The escalating kerfuffle over San Antonio’s proposed Project Marvel took a farcical turn on Wednesday, August 20 as Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones commandeered the mic at a pro-development press conference. The unexpected appearance led to a few awkward moments and a heated exchange with colorful local personality Spurs Jesus.
San Antonio business leaders gathered at City Hall to voice their support for a nonbinding August 21 vote that would lay the groundwork for a $1.3 billion downtown arena. Jones crashed the rally as the La Gloria restaurateur was speaking.
“You know, I’ve been known to crash a party or two,” she said in a video captured by local ABC affiliate KSAT.
Bucking against most of the San Antonio City Council, the mayor has called for a pause in communications with Spurs Sports and Entertainment. Jones is calling for an independent economic impact study to be carried out before any further decisions are made.
The proposal did not sit well with Spurs Jesus — aka local basketball megafan Cordero Maldonado — who dresses as the Christian messiah at the team’s games.
“What are you going to say to the people of San Antonio when it happens on your watch, the Spurs decide to move to Austin and we are left without?” the local celebrity asked while holding a shovel printed with the words, “build it.”
“The Spurs have never said that they would leave San Antonio,” countered Jones. “That is a fearful comment, but the Spurs have never said that.”
The unlikely duo volleyed back and forth for a few moments before the rally resumed.
Jones has been on the offensive over the past week to garner support for an independent study. While a city-commission analysis stated that the arena could bring hundreds of millions of dollars to the city, Project Marvel naysayers argue the company that conducted the report, CSL International, has close ties to the Spurs.
Competing proposals are on the Thursday, August 21 City Council agenda. One would agree to Spurs cost-splitting terms, which would put the city on the hook for $489 million. The other would delay negotiations. The sure-to-be contentious debate will kick off at 9 am. Locals can watch blow-by-blow on the city’s government channel online.