The City of San Antonio is considering stepping back its legal arguments on a case related to the empty lot next to the historic Hays Street Bridge. The Texas Supreme Court sided with bridge and neighborhood preservation advocates in a March 15 ruling.
“Though the Texas Supreme Court on Friday directed the Fourth Court of Appeals to take up the City’s remaining arguments on the case, the City of San Antonio is exploring options on how to remove those issues from consideration,” City Attorney Andy Segovia said via text on Wednesday.
Segovia was not available to elaborate. It’s unclear what that implies for the underlying legal challenge, but a City spokeswoman said it will not impact the residential development slated for the Cherry Street location.
Mayor Ron Nirenberg told the Rivard Report he couldn’t comment on a legal outcome, saying that’s for the attorneys and court system, but “I can tell you it’s my desire, and I believe the desire of our City, to put what has been a very difficult … conflict to rest as best we can.”
The Hays Street Bridge Restoration Group sued the City of San Antonio in 2012 to block the City’s sale of the nearly 2-acre property on the near East Side, a plot that was ultimately deeded over to a developer. The group claims the land was intended to be a park as part of the bridge restoration project, and an attorney representing the group says if it can win the underlying lawsuit, the residential development could be halted or reversed.
“It’s not our land any more, unfortunately,” Nirenberg said, so it’s unclear what will come of it. “Some of that requires other conversations. But in terms of the lawsuit, I don’t think there’s any desire to continue it – at least not on my end.”
Earlier Wednesday, District 6 Councilman and mayoral candidate Greg Brockhouse called on the City to excuse itself from the lawsuit.
“The only way to restore public trust is to drop all legal challenges, stop wasting public tax dollars and help the Restoration Group and neighboring community reclaim their landmark and public space,” Brockhouse wrote in a press release.
If elected, he pledged to “end this cycle of frivolous lawsuits,” referring to a lawsuit the City dropped in November that was challenging the constitutionality of the firefighter union contract’s 10-year evergreen clause.
But it appears the mayor and the lead challenger for his seat at least agree that the City needs to adjust its course in the Hays Street case.
In 2014, a Bexar County jury found that the City had violated the memorandum of understanding when it sold the land, but that it was never a park. Click here to download the judgment. Three years later, the Fourth Court of Appeals overturned that ruling, saying the City was immune from being sued for breach of contract. The Supreme Court disagreed and issued its decision last Friday.
Developer Mitch Meyer received approval last year from the City to build a five-story apartment complex on the land at 803 N. Cherry St.
“I am ‘full speed ahead’ and pulling permits,” Meyer said via text.
Meyer, and Alamo Beer’s Simor who gave him the land, need to do the decent thing and back away from the development plans.
Cheryl Sculley was a good city manager 99% of the time. Her arrogant over-ride of HDRC, City Council and bridge supporters in this case was definitely in the 1% column!
How is leaving a lot empty and blighted the decent thing to do? I’d say the decent thing is for them to build much needed housing for a city drastically lacking it.
We have many of these types of housing complexes under construction now. The developer can build his box somewhere else as there are plenty truly empty and blighted lots around.
Proponents for the park do not want it empty or blighted, they want a public space with trees, benches, and public accessibility as the donors of that land initially wanted.
With what money is a park going to be built? Dignowity and Lockwood parks are two blocks away and are still awaiting their renovations after many years. You want to add an additional park that will deplete the already very limited park funds?
And I’d love to know of these other large empty lots that are available for development that you speak of. Looking at a Google map, it looks like most of the large lots in or near downtown have been developed already or are slated to be.
another needle park – might as well build a police sub-station down there.
good going. a waste of perfectly good land.
there are two parks within two blocks of the Bridge.
Agreed, it would be nice to see those two parks that are literally down the street get an upgrade.
John and Jack need us to believe that this part of the neighborhood is a hellhole of blight and used needles which is so horrible that… a developer wants to put luxury apartments there?
The reason a developer wants to put luxury apartments there is because it’s a nice place where people want to be. The reason this is a nice place is because of decades of vision, fundraising, and work put in by neighbors here in the community.
That’s right (neighbors and community) you hit the nail on the head !!!!
Yes housing is needed. AFFORDABLE HOUSING! The City of San Antonio gives developers tax breaks and other economic incentives only so unaffordable housing can be built!
It’s time to end corporate welfare and serve the people that don’t have six figure incomes!
Tell us O Great and Wise Pancho, how that is done without incentives? You clearly don’t know a thing about development and what it takes to finance a project. You want affordable housing without incentivizing the developers? Then get after SAHA to get on the stick and build 25,000 new units. Doesn’t matter how it’s funded – although perhaps you can tell them how.
I’m in no way trying to side with any politics on this issue, this is just my opinion and belief. I will say after living in Dignowity for 2 years+ I DO NOT WANT ANOTHER HOMELESS DRUG INFESTED PARK TO TRY AND WALK MY DOG OR TAKE MY GRANDDAUGHTER ON A BIKE RIDE, I WILL NOT GO TO THE PARK BY MYSELF the police are in that area constantly. We do not have enough resources to police the parks we have. When I moved here I was told Dignowity and Lockwood Parks where being totally renovated……2 years ago? Just Sayin