SAN ANTONIO \u2013 When Bexar County voters head to the polls in November, their decision on whether to help fund a new Spurs arena could carry larger consequences for the project.<\/p>\n
The county, City of San Antonio, and Spurs Sports & Entertainment have been hammering out a deal to fund a new arena at Hemisfair, which could cost up to $1.5 billion. Most of the price tag would be covered by city and county financing, under the latest plans.<\/p>\n
The county\u2019s proposed contribution of 25% of the cost, up to a maximum $311 million, has already been put on the November ballot<\/a> for voter approval, while the city and SS&E\u2019s negotiations are still ongoing<\/a>.<\/p>\n The most recent numbers, though, include between $350 million and $500 million of city financing and $500 million from the Spurs, who would also cover cost overruns.<\/p>\n To cover its share, the city plans to take on debt and pay it back through special tax capture zones and lease revenue from the arena and new development.<\/p>\n Supporters have argued that those funding sources<\/a> would not directly affect San Antonio taxpayers. They also wouldn\u2019t require taxpayer approval.<\/p>\n However, voters\u2019 decisions in November would likely still determine if they get tapped.<\/p>\n \u201cI would expect that in the (letter of intent), it will say the city\u2019s participation is contingent upon a November passage of the county venue tax,\u201d SS&E Chief Legal Officer Bobby Perez told council members at Wednesday\u2019s meeting.<\/p>\n County voters passed the current venue tax \u2014 split between a 5% tax on short-term car rentals and a 1.75% hotel occupancy tax \u2014 in 1999 to fund the construction of the Spurs\u2019 current home, the now-Frost Bank Center.<\/p>\n