It’s been a year since the city created a new department tasked with bringing new streets, drainage, parks, police substations and other major construction projects across the finish line.
Since then, 78% of those projects have been completed or started.
By the end of the year, that figure will grow to 87%, said Michael Shannon, director of the Capital Delivery Department, which was spun out of Public Works in 2025.
The progress update comes as city council debates cost reductions and tax increases ahead of approving the fiscal year 2027 budget and launching the next five-year bond process.
San Antonio voters could be asked to approve a 2027 bond package in May while 85 of the 2022 bond projects remain incomplete.
The Capital Delivery Department focuses on new, large-scale projects while Public Works maintains existing infrastructure such as streets, sidewalks, drainage and traffic systems.
Shannon’s newly formed office met the charge to improve communication during the past year, he said during a council budget workshop on Wednesday, and also better coordinate with utility providers and manage contractor performance.
The restructuring that followed several years of strife over projects that hit snags and dragged on far longer than expected has been effective, he said.
“I think we have performance metrics that show that, and actually, we’re putting targets in front of us for future projects that are more on time, more under budget, and better communication with our stakeholders,” he said in response to the question from Councilman Marc Whyte (D10).
Shannon also outlined for council details from the department’s 2027 fiscal year budget. The city’s $1.4 billion capital budget includes $860 million for the San Antonio International Airport, its largest bucket.
The Capital Delivery Department’s portion of the fiscal year 2027 proposed budget is $317.6 million. The department is funded from the capital management services (CMS) budget, a restricted fund, not the city’s general fund.
Public Works Director Art Reinhardt also presented his department’s fiscal year 2027 budget Wednesday in one of a series of budget workshop sessions the council has held in recent weeks.
The Public Works annual budget is $326.5 million. Unlike Capital Delivery, which is funded through the CMS, Public Works is funded by the general fund, restricted funds, capital projects and grants.
Streets maintenance is the largest cost, accounting for $129.8 million of the budget. Storm water engineering and operations comes in next at $54.6 million.
In 2027, Public Works expects to repair 534 miles of streets, 22 miles of sidewalks and 80 miles of channels and creeks in San Antonio. Other projects include vegetation management, pavement markings, traffic safety and operations, traffic signals and school pedestrian safety.
Council members posed a number of questions to staff about specific streets and sidewalks that need work in their districts, and their infrastructure needs versus other districts’, while also weighing budget and bond capacity options presented by City Manager Erik Walsh and city staff.
Reinhardt outlined several proposed cuts in his 2027 budget, including eliminating two vacant positions for a savings of $142,000 and new radar feedback traffic signs and flashing stop signs for $500,000 savings.
He also pitched new fee increases for things like permits to close streets, parking or sidewalks for special events, and for right-of-way penalties. The revenue from those fees covers the cost for city staff to complete those tasks.
New initiatives Public Works is continuing or tackling in 2027, Reinhardt said, include a traffic study to lower speed limits, improve traffic signal performance and a pilot program to detect road closures at railroad crossings and notify motorists.
But demands on the budget for all the city’s needs loomed large during the session as council members and Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones grappled with the debt management plan, financial assumptions and the economy.
Chief Financial Officer Troy Elliott tried to reassure them.
“Some of the levers that we have, there are several,” he said, laying out one scenario. “If you went forward with the $450 million bond program and our assumptions don’t hold, the economy doesn’t recover as fast as we thought, and values drop, there’s a number of things at our disposal we can do.”
Debt can be restructured, he said, and bond projects can be deferred, he said.
The council is expected to finalize the proposed $4.4 billion budget at its Sept. 17 meeting.
City Council will be asked to approve a bond schedule, leading up to a May or November 2027 election, at its Sept. 30 meeting.
