click to enlarge A conceptual rendering shows what proposed San Antonio sports district Project Marvel might look like in 15 years. - Courtesy Image / City of San Antonio
A conceptual rendering shows what proposed San Antonio sports district Project Marvel might look like in 15 years.
Bexar County voters aren't sold on plans to build a multi-billion dollar sports and entertainment complex at HemisFair, according to a new poll from the University of Texas at San Antonio.
Further, the UTSA survey shows local voters aren't enthusiastic about spending tax money on a new arena for the San Antonio Spurs — one of the components of that proposed complex, dubbed Project Marvel.
Indeed, just 41% of the 1,000 or so eligible Bexar County voters surveyed by the university's Center for Public Opinion Research said they're in favor of city and county officials moving forward with the $2.5 billion downtown complex.
The Project Marvel plan calls for the construction of a $1 billion arena for the Spurs, a $1 billion expansion of the Henry B. Gonzales Convention Center and converting the John Wood Federal Courthouse into a 5,000-seat concert venue.
The city and county are still trying to figure out how to pay for the full project, which also could include pricy Alamodome renovations, a new convention center hotel and a land bridge connecting downtown to the East Side.
More than half of those in the UTSA poll — 56% — said they either oppose the Project Marvel plan or are unsure whether it should continue. Of that total, 36% said the project shouldn't proceed, while 20% said they were unsure.
click to enlarge Poll: San Antonio voters not sold on spending tax money on Project Marvel, Spurs arena (2)
Courtesy of UTSA Center for Public Opinion Research
Voters weren't much more enthusiastic about using public funds to build a new NBA arena for the Spurs.
Only 42% of poll respondents are in favor of using Bexar County's venue tax — levied on hotel stays and rental car fees — to fund a new sports facility. Forty-one percent were against the proposed funding mechanism, while 15% said they weren't sure.
click to enlarge Poll: San Antonio voters not sold on spending tax money on Project Marvel, Spurs arena (3)
Courtesy of UTSA Center for Public Opinion Research
UTSA released it poll, conducted between Feb. 17-20, less than a week after City Council approved City Manager Erik Walsh to start negotiations with county officials and Spurs Sports & Entertainment to hash out a deal to construct the arena.
If Walsh's negotiations are successful and a deal is reached by July, the question of using the visitor's tax to fund a new Spurs facility could be put to Bexar County voters in time for the November election.
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click to enlarge San Antonio's Missions are some of its most iconic historic landmarks. Mission San José is perhaps best known, but there’s also Mission Concepción, Mission San Juan and Mission Espada, all located on the South Side. - Shutterstock / Jaclyne Ortiz
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