SAN ANTONIO – The San Antonio City Council is set to make a pivotal decision on Thursday regarding the approval of a term sheet for a new Spurs arena downtown. The decision could shape the city’s future for generations, with the council weighing whether to proceed with the project or delay it, as requested by the new mayor.

The proposed arena, with a projected cost of $1.3 billion, would see the Spurs contributing $500 million and covering any cost overruns. The city’s share would be $489 million, while Bexar County could contribute up to $311 million, pending voter approval in November. The funding from the city and county would come from taxes paid by visitors, a point emphasized by Spurs officials.

“We’re excited about the term sheet and we do think it’s a good deal for the residents of San Antonio and Bexar County,” said Bobby Perez, Spurs Chief Legal Officer. “The structure and the framework is set up so the arena is funded by visitors and not by residents of San Antonio and Bexar County.”

Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones is advocating for a pause on the project, calling for another economic impact report and more public meetings. Tensions have been high, as evidenced by a recent town hall meeting on the city budget where a heated exchange occurred between Mayor Jones and District 10 Councilman Marc Whyte.

The disagreement arose when Councilman Whyte objected to the mayor discussing Project Marvel during a meeting intended to focus on the overall budget.

“I want independent information. And then I want to make sure your good councilman brings that data to you,” said Mayor Jones.

Councilman Whyte noted that he and the mayor had previously agreed to keep the meeting focused solely on the budget.

“The dishonesty unfortunately continues. We had a – actually, to let everyone in on this – tonight’s about the town hall on the budget. And we had an agreement literally five minutes ago that we would allow the mayor to speak if we kept it to the budget – and not on Project Marvel,” Councilman Whyte responded. “Mayor, respectfully, you’ve had opportunity mayor….”

As the city council meeting approaches, the decision on the Spurs arena remains a contentious issue.