Broke Bexar County scrapes together another $10 million for billionaire Graham Weston’s ballpark

Departing Bexar County Judge Peter Sakai speaks to reporters during a recent event. Credit: Michael Karlis

Bexar County Commissioners Court last week scraped together another $10 million for a new publicly financed minor league baseball stadium that backers insist will turn downtown into a hub of activity and commerce.

However, the decision to kick in the additional funding came at the same April 28 meeting that the court acknowledged county coffers are nearly empty and County Manager David Smith told commissioners they were walking into the county’s worst financial situation since 2008.

“This would be the worst year for property tax revenue that we’ve seen … and that’s going on 30 budgets,” Smith said in remarks before the court.

Even though the county faces a $28 million deficit by 2028, departing Bexar County Judge Peter Sakai and other commissioners agreed to loan Designated Bidders LLC — the group that owns the San Antonio Missions Double-A baseball team — $10 million to help fund the stadium project near San Pedro Creek.

Billionaire real estate developer Graham Weston is a core investor in Designated Bidders LLC, and his firm Weston Urban is expected to contribute to economic development around the baseball stadium, including a new hotel and apartments.

Hypothetically, tax revenue and rising property values stemming from the development will repay the $126 million in bonds Bexar County and the City of San Antonio issued to fund the ballpark. Designated Bidders is contributing $34 million of the overall funding.

It’s unclear at press time why Designated Bidders needs another $10 million, since discussions about the loan occurred behind closed doors during an executive session last month, according to the Express-News.

Commissioners asked county staff to explore several options during that closed-door meeting, the daily reports. Those include a proposal in which Weston Urban’s planned apartment buildings around the ballpark could include low-income housing.

Weston Urban reportedly pushed back at that idea. But they got that didn’t stop the court from green lighting the $10 million loan.

Designated Bidders agreed to repay the loan at an annual interest rate of about 4%. However, the Express-News reports that it’s unclear whether the county and the team have set a repayment schedule.

In exchange for the additional loan, Designated Bidders pledged to build a public park, according to the daily. However, the location of the park and its opening date remain murky.

“The county is essentially loaning some money, but we’re also getting a public park,” Precinct 2 Commissioner Justin Rodriguez said during the April 28 meeting.

Sign Up for SA Current newsletters.

Related Stories