SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio is bracing for an influx of visitors downtown as the Spurs host the New York Knicks in Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday evening.
While the downtown area expects to see a boom, the East Side of San Antonio, where the Spurs play at the Frost Bank Center, could be overlooked. State Rep. Barbara Gervin-Hawkins hopes to improve the East Side’s attractions in the next three to five years as the Spurs head out of the area and to downtown.
“With the Spurs moving, we now have more land space,” Gervin-Hawkins said. “My hope and prayer is that as we develop that space into a destination with food, high-level restaurants, possibly a hotel, all of those things that can happen, it attracts those folks who don’t want to be downtown in the clutter.”
However, Gervin-Hawkins knows upgrades are needed to support the growth.
“The infrastructure is not there,” Gervin-Hawkins said.
Hawkins also raised the possibility of changes to the Willow Springs Golf Course, located across the street from the arena, as part of a broader redevelopment conversation that could include a hotel.
“I want to see us look at that golf course a little bit, not eliminate it, but maybe restructure it,” Gervin-Hawkins said.
While there are not solid plans for what will happen to the East Side facilities in the next couple of years, Gervin-Hawkins is hoping changes can begin soon.
“I’m thinking two years of planning, possibly another two of construction,” Gervin-Hawkins said. “So, we’re looking at anywhere from a three- to five-year plan.”
Hawkins said any redevelopment effort would require coordination among multiple stakeholders, including city and county officials and the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo.
