SAN ANTONIO – The San Antonio Independent School District Board of Trustees unanimously approved the sale of a critical piece of land that is expected to become the future home of the San Antonio Missions.
The board approved the resolution during its Monday meeting to sell the property to Bexar County after discussing the move in a closed session.
The projected $160 million, 4,500-seat stadium would replace Wolff Stadium, which does not meet current Major League Baseball (MLB) standards.
According to the resolution, San Antonio ISD will receive the following in exchange for selling the land to Bexar County:
- Access to use the land for district purposes
- Land for a new parking garage near the Fox Tech campus, “including the construction, use and eventual ownership”
- The county will alleviate parking fees at the Quincy Street garage for the district and allow it to have more operational control
- Land for a new Advanced Learning Academy expansion
- A commitment from the county to adopt a five-year plan for affordable housing goals by Dec. 31
- SAISD will be allowed to appoint one member to the San Antonio Housing Trust and Foundation
The project will be largely funded by bonds through the newly created San Pedro Creek Development Authority and a $34 million equity contribution from Designated Bidders, LLC, the ownership group that owns the Missions.
The bonds will be repaid through a combination of $1 million annual lease payments, $2 ticket fees and property tax revenue funneled through the Houston Street Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ).
The TIRZ money is expected to be largely generated by new projects built by the team’s developer partner, Weston Urban, whose co-founders, Randy Smith and Graham Weston, are also part of the Missions’ ownership group.
Earlier this year, the Missions announced that the ballpark would be designed by architectural firm Populous. The firm previously designed other well-known structures across North America including the Sphere in Las Vegas and multiple stadiums for MLB teams.
In April, the team said that it expects renderings for the new stadium to be completed by this summer and hopes to open the ballpark in time for the Missions’ 2028 season.
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