Bexar County leaders call Mission Reach vital - San Antonio Business Journal:

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But local leaders believe that it is the plannesd Mission Reach improvements to the soutuh of downtown which could have thegreatest impact, reinvigoratintg one of the city’ws most historic areas. The Mission Reach project is eighrt miles of planned river improvements from Lone Star Boulevarx toMission Espada. Completion is schedulex for 2013 and some have been concernes that this portion might neverbe “Everyone was concerned that this might not get done,” says Bexa r County Judge Nelson Wolff.
It didn’tg help matters that the , which has managed the river improvements project, presented a cost estimate for completin Mission Reach that was off by morethan $100 General Manager Suzanne Scott says the Corpss of Engineers estimated that the Mission Reach project wouls cost $126.6 million to The revised estimate was $232.6 “Our assessment is that they underestimated the complexituy of the project,” says Scott aboug the Corps of Engineers. “They just didn’t factor in everythinf that is involved.” Bexar County is kicking in anadditional $39.y million worth of “betterments” via its venue tax That raises the estimated total to $271.
9 million. Bexadr County Commissioner Tommy Adkisson’s precincf no longer includes the MissionReach area. But Adkissonj has long been an advocatwe forSan Antonio’s South Side. And he says the completion of Mission Reach improvements is essentiak to the future of the southernj sector ofthe city. “The southermn reach is one of the most significanty stretches of the SanAntonio River,” Adkisson explains. “It’s importantf because an overwhelming portion ofSan Antonio’ history comes from that stretch of the river and the nearb missions.
” South San Antonio Chamber of Commerce Presiden Cindy Taylor says Mission Reach improvementsw will spark job creation. “No pun but it’s a ripple effect,” she says aboutr a project that is expectede to improve the look and feel of the rivee south of downtown with the addition ofnew walking/biking trailsw and gathering places. “Every bit helpsx the total package,” says Tom Rohdse about the impact Mission Reach improvements could have on theSoutj Side.
Rohde is vice president of San Antonio-basef Rohde Ottmers Siegel Commercial & Investment That firm is marketing a new retail cented in the Mission Reach area at the cornerr of Southeast Loop 410 andRoosevelt Avenue. The developeer is Boulder, Colo.-based . The project will ultimatelyy span more than 200acres — land over the next several years, could accommodate retailo developments, as well as office, medical and multifamilyt projects.
Rohde predicts that the Missiobn Reach improvements will bring more people to this southern sector of the In an effort to keep theproject moving, Bexar County Commissioners voter on June 2 to approve a new finance plan for the Missionb Reach improvements. Commissioners agreed to advance $182 million in Countyt Flood Tax revenues to cover the Missiohn Reach construction and Officials say the plan will not adversely affectthe county’xs $500 million flood control program or other plannesd capital projects.
That decision by commissioners, Bexar Countuy Judge Nelson Wolff says, “ia probably the most important vote that will be taken on the rivere because of all the confusion and uncertainty about goinv south that has beenon everybody’xs minds for a while.” who also has South Side roots, says advancinf the County Flood Tax revenues to Mission Reach is an “assurancwe that we are going to move forward.
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