Bexar County Judge Peter Sakai laid out some of his most specific plans yet for economic development Wednesday, including collaborating with other Central and South Texas leaders on issues like infrastructure and transportation that could help the region share in each others’ economic success.
That approach is earning Sakai praise from business leaders who say they’ve long wanted to see regional leaders work together more closely.
In the audience for Sakai’s first State of the County speech were Travis County Judge Andy Brown, Hidalgo County Judge Richard Cortez and Medina County Judge Keith Lutz — an unusual gathering of leaders who share many of the same challenges but don’t frequently get to meet in person.
“They are my friends and they’ve committed to working together,” Sakai told the audience. “… Bexar County is a regional powerhouse, but we have only scratched the surface of what we can be.”
Sakai grew up in McAllen, in Hidalgo County, and spent most of his career as a Bexar County district judge before running for county judge last year. He campaigned on a promise to use that experience to overhaul county government, something he’s spent much of his time focused on since taking office.
Five months into the job, however, Sakai’s address to business leaders stressed an eagerness to take on some bigger projects, like addressing transportation issues and attracting businesses to the county.
“Bexar County will expand its role as a catalyst for change, the economic generator and a hub for commerce, education and public health in South Texas,” Sakai told the audience.
“We have a unique opportunity to expand our reach to Laredo, the Valley and over to Corpus Christi and more,” he said.
For example, Sakai said he now chairs the Texas Department of Transportation’s U.S. Highway 90 Texas Corridor Study Steering Committee, which aims to improve east-west transportation and trade running across the southern part of the state. That project is “setting the stage for regional growth,” Sakai said.
Earlier this month he also met with Japan’s Hideaki Omura, governor of Aichi Prefecture, who oversees major hubs for auto and aerospace manufacturing.
“We laid the foundation for more international investment in Bexar,” said Sakai, who is Japanese-American. “… We can recruit companies to relocate through strategies like land banking — or buying land for corporate footprints — and investing in infrastructure and connectivity.”
Leaders of the North San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, which hosted the event, praised Sakai’s efforts to attract business to Bexar County, including his ability to speak Japanese with Omura.
They also shared his focus on collaborating across municipalities — an effort they’re also engaging in to address housing needs and job creation.
“The business community absolutely supports a regional approach, working with smaller cities, adjacent counties, the City of San Antonio, Bexar County. … It’s the only way we move forward as a region,” said Rob Killen, a land use attorney who leads the chamber’s government affairs work.
Of Sakai’s ability to navigate the needs of business, Killen said, “I absolutely think he gets it.”
Despite plenty of rivalries and difference of opinion on the region’s challenges, Sakai said the county judges are making an effort to get to know one another.
After the November election, he Facetimed with Brown and Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo.
Brown and Sakai later attended the first Spurs game in Austin, where Brown said Sakai made him promise not to try to steal the team.
“We’re seeing a lot of the same problems in our county that they have here,” Brown said in an interview Wednesday. “It’s hard to hire people to work in the jail, there are questions about water, and things like that.”
“Some of the really exciting things, though, I think, is trying to get maybe passenger rail service between Austin and San Antonio to make it easier for us to go to the Spurs games,” he added. “… So I look forward to working with [Sakai] on that.”
Sakai said he isn’t sold on the idea of intercity rail — a project long discussed by local leaders but hampered by funding obstacles — but he shares Brown’s desire to connect the two cities and still gave the idea a shout-out in his speech.
After the event Sakai told reporters the leaders don’t get together as much as they would like, but have already built some strong connections.
“We know each other, we trust each other, and when we talk, we talk about how we can collaborate and become a regional powerhouse,” Sakai said.
