The General Services Administration has sold a federal property to the city of San Antonio to support a new downtown entertainment district and arena for the city’s NBA team.
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The GSA this week closed on a $30M sale of three parcels spanning 5.7 acres, which includes the San Antonio Federal Building West at 727 E. Cesar E. Chavez Blvd. and two parking lots across the street, the agency announced in a press release. The sale was funded by the San Antonio Spurs and was completed five years ahead of schedule, according to the GSA, which manages the federal government's real estate.
The property sale is tied to a multibillion-dollar proposal called Project Marvel, which aims to create a new downtown district centered around a modern Spurs arena. The Spurs lost to the New York Knicks in last month’s NBA championship series.
The deal will “help guide future growth and redevelopment in the heart of our city as we work toward a downtown Sports and Entertainment District and a new Spurs arena,” San Antonio City Manager Erik Walsh said in the release.
The planned mixed-use redevelopment is slated to include an expansion of the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, renovations to the Alamodome and a conversion of the John H. Wood Jr. Courthouse into a concert venue, according to Project Marvel’s website.
Details on how the newly sold site will be redeveloped haven’t been released.
Voters approved the funding framework for a new Spurs arena last fall. The project is expected to cost at least $1.2B, according to KENS 5.
The GSA deal is part of a Trump administration effort to reduce costs and remove underutilized federal properties from its real estate portfolio. In recent months, the federal government has sold the Old Post Office in Washington, D.C., a former land port of entry in Madawaska, Maine, and the former Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant in Arden Hills, Minnesota.
The GSA estimates that these sales will eliminate billions of dollars in delinquent maintenance and operating costs, according to the release. The GSA used a short-term sale-leaseback agreement to speed up the transaction process, allowing the GSA to offload the property without disrupting tenants, who will eventually be relocated.
This summer, Spurs parent company Spurs Sports & Entertainment will host a series of community meetings to discuss details of the proposed district. Those meetings, requested by community leaders, will begin next week.
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