Mr. McGowan, Dr. Forgey’s former real estate student from Texas A&M, informed us that currently the largest projects that he foresees impacting the city are joint ventures with the federal government. The City of San Antonio will be redeveloping large non performing real estate assets for federal tenants heavily funded by the GSA. General Service Administration is a central management agency that sets Federal policy for Federal procurement and real property management and information resources management funds to create public facilities. This will hopefully benefit the City of San Antonio by creating a $300 million value within 3 to 7 years. The city also finds resources to assist developers with products such as new market tax credits. The New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) Program permits taxpayers to receive a credit against Federal income taxes for making qualified equity investments in designated Community Development Entities (CDEs).
According to Mr. Jesus Garza San Antonio receives somewhere in the neighborhood of $13 billion from tourism while capitalizing on its strong military presence benefiting another $3 billion. Not known for its fortune 500 corporation capacity, according to Mr. McGowan and Mr. Richard Milk courting larger corporations in San Antonio is challenging. This as we discussed, is partially due to the lack of workforce, and the emphasis/dependence that the city places on tourism.
All men stated that they would like to see a denser, more sustainable San Antonio however several factors stand in the way to make this a smooth possibility. One of the key issues is the perception of crime and education in urban areas. Residents who choose to live in the suburbs are concerned about their children’s education. Mr. Howard stated that this tends to be a huge misunderstanding and that in-fact the schools in older/urban areas offer quality educations.
Investors as a whole have not risked their capital in inner city redevelopments. Investors would rather invest in hotels where they are almost guaranteed a decent ROI without dealing with inner city headaches. Mr. Garza stated that though the city does not want to be forceful with developers and dictate what and where they should build. However the city discourages sprawl by increasing impact fees.
Afterwards we met with Ms. Betty Feldman City Architect and Mr. Laurence Doxsey, Director of Environmental Management. Ms. Feldman stated that more required sustainable measures will be in San Antonio’s development policies/ordinances. I tend to disagree with this strategy. Creating a policy that mandates investors to spend additional funds on making properties sustainable is not fair. Investors often take risks with their personal funds therefore it should be their decision.
Mr. Doxsey practices what he preaches. He arrived to the building on his bicycle and believes that we all should go the extra mile to reduce our carbon foot print. Currently the city has implemented the Mission Verde Center which will become a multipurpose education, training and research center for renewable and energy efficient technologies, water management, and conservation demonstration. The city also has Casa De Verde for low inecome families whose income is at or below 20% of the poverty level. Families can receive loans for home improvements to decrease their monthly utility bills. Loans are given up to 20 years in some cases for payback periods and payment amounts tend to be less than the amount families save.
City Inspectors Mr. Ray Herra and Ms. Sylvia Cortez stated that their primary concerns while inspecting properties are any life and safety issues. They use an investigative staff to ensure that residents and real estate investors do not operate outside the scope of their permits. Their department is complaint driven. Ms. Cortez stated that in San Antonio you must pull permits for just about everything with the exception of basic plumbing permits for primary residents. This includes the replacement of sheet rock. Anyone found in violation will receive a penalty that includes a double fee for the permit. Historic properties maybe given some leeway as to structures within however this is done on a case by case. Historic properties require a certificate of appropriateness. Should a commercial properties usuage change owners or landlords should request a new certificate of occupancy to ensure the property meets all guidelines.
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