The surprising battle that shaped Spurs’ summer after NBA Finals run

By any reasonable standard, the San Antonio Spurs are enjoying a good offseason. Some might describe it as great. But in between re-signing Victor Wembanyama, bringing back all of their key players, adding Tobias Harris, and a solid, potentially fantastic, draft all while escaping bad happenings, the franchise found itself in yet another go-round with the city’s mayor.

Elected last summer, Gina Ortiz Jones has questioned San Antonio taxpayers’ role in helping the Spurs pay for a new downtown arena that’s been in talks for several years.

Though voters in the county (Bexar) narrowly approved public funding in November for the sports and entertainment district that would encompass the team’s new gym, the mayor recently pushed for a city-wide vote, citing that a $489 million municipal contribution was not on the county ballot.

Unlike the county election, the City of San Antonio was not required to give citizens a vote. Siding with the Spurs, City Council voted not to put the item on the ballot this November by a 5-6 tally in special session.

“The decision allows San Antonio to move forward on a path that was established through years of work, public discussion, City and County action and last year’s vote,” RC Buford, the CEO of Spurs Sports & Entertainment, said. “We can now turn our full attention to delivering on that shared vision and the transformational opportunity ahead for our city.”

In alluding to the county vote to approve $311M, the Spurs organization and arena supporters contend that voters were aware of the facility’s financing agreement, which calls for the franchise to pay $500M. They also point to the reality that the City’s $489M contribution will come from Texas funds allocated for entertainment venues.

“We are grateful to the community, business and civic leaders, Spurs fans and residents who have taken the time to learn the facts and make their voices heard. There is still a great deal of work ahead, and we are ready for it. We remain committed to working alongside our public and community partners to deliver a downtown arena and district that strengthens San Antonio for generations to come,” Buford continued.

Ortiz Jones also released a statement after the City Council’s decision struck down her request.

“I will always fight to ensure our community has more of a say in how their money is spent, not less. They deserve that,” the San Antonio mayor said.

“Unfortunately, based on the Council’s 5-6 vote, City voters will not have the opportunity to vote on the City’s $489 million contribution to the Spurs arena,” Ortiz Jones continued. “As the Terms Sheet remains non-binding, I look forward to working with my colleagues to ensure the final Terms Sheet that will come before us for a vote is the best possible deal for our City.

This was a pivotal vote in our City’s history, and I’m thankful to everyone who made their voice heard.”

The term sheet Ortiz Jones refers to includes the aforementioned monetary amounts and states, among other details, that the Spurs are responsible for any cost overages for the new arena.

NBA training camps will start in late September/early October. The Spurs players hope to avoid the kind of early tussles their brass faced over the summer.

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