{"id":453190,"date":"2025-12-17T12:23:35","date_gmt":"2025-12-17T12:23:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/453190\/"},"modified":"2025-12-17T12:23:35","modified_gmt":"2025-12-17T12:23:35","slug":"texas-spending-62-million-to-buy-hotels-adjacent-the-alamo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/453190\/","title":{"rendered":"Texas spending $62 million to buy hotels adjacent the Alamo"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"TheThe Menger Hotel, which opened in 1859, now has a new owner: the State of Texas. Credit: Sanford Nowlin<\/p>\n

In case anyone\u2019s wondering how much taxpayer money Texas is spending to protect the Alamo\u2019s \u201challowed grounds\u201d by buying up nearly hotels, the number is now public.<\/p>\n

The Texas General Land Office (GLO) dropped a combined $62 million to purchase downtown\u2019s Menger and Crockett hotels, a sales agreement obtained by the San Antonio Business Journal shows<\/a>. Of the total, $40.5 million covers the cost of the Menger with the remaining $21.5 million spent on the Crockett.<\/p>\n

The GLO handled the transaction in partnership with Ohio-based hospitality investor Rockbridge, which will operate the hotels, the Business Journal also reports. Bexar County last appraised the properties at a combined $55 million.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy securing the footprint around the Alamo Complex for the State of Texas, we are protecting these hallowed grounds and enhancing one of our nation\u2019s most sacred historical sites,\u201d\u00a0Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham said via email back in August, when the state announced its purchase<\/a>. \u201cThis investment ensures the Shrine of Texas Liberty, the Alamo, will become the most prominent battlefield site in the country \u2014 charting its own destiny for generations to come.\u201d<\/p>\n

Takeover and controversy<\/strong><\/p>\n

The GLO took over day-to-day oversight of the Alamo in 2011 after then-Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush kicked out the Daughters of the Republic of Texas, the private group that had long managed the site. Bush alleged the DRT wasn\u2019t keeping up its contract, and the move unleashed a legal battle.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The state\u2019s purchase of the two hotels comes amid major upgrades at the Alamo complex, including the addition of the 160,000-square-foot Alamo Visitor Center and Museum, expected to open in 2027. The state has approved $400 million to cover upgrades to the historical site, while Bexar County\u00a0has pumped $25 million into upgrades in Alamo Plaza.<\/p>\n

The state\u2019s operation of the Alamo isn\u2019t been without controversy, though.<\/p>\n

Kate Rogers, who oversaw the recent upgrades as executive director of the Alamo Trust, last month resigned after Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick publicly targeted<\/a> her over her 2023 doctoral dissertation, alleging it showed that her views were \u201cincompatible\u201d with the state\u2019s vision of history.<\/p>\n

Rogers has since sued Patrick and Buckingham<\/a>, alleging they violated her First Amendment rights by pressuring the Alamo Trust\u2019s board to remove her. <\/p>\n

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