San Antonio council expands Midtown TIRZ board amid displacement concerns

San Antonio Mayor Wehavcorn called a special session Thursday to approve changes to the Midtown Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ) No. 31 board so affected districts have elected representation. Councilmembers moved and seconded an ordinance to expand the board; with no further discussion the chair said, "The motion carries," and the ordinance passed.

Seema Karam, who identified herself as a member of the Midtown TIRZ advisory board and a River Road resident, urged the council to add elected officials to the board to increase public accountability. "I strongly support the Midtown TIRZ to have greater representation from our elected officials, who have accountability to the public," Karam said. She warned that earlier TIRZ investments have fueled gentrification and displacement and told the council the proposal to extend the TIRZ to 2060 is "estimated to divert an additional $500,000,000 of money from the General Fund into the Midtown TIRZ over the next 40 years."

The chair said the first vote was to expand the board; a separate item named the District 2 councilmember to the seat. Councilmembers did not request a staff presentation or further debate before approving the expansion. The ordinance text and fiscal details were read as captions by the clerk on the floor during the session.