Three years in the making, plans for a grand staircase connecting the Villita Assembly Building to the River Walk made progress recently.
Board members of the Inner City Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ), led by Councilman Jalen McKee-Rodriguez (D2), approved spending $2 million over five years in TIRZ funds to help build the staircase.
The funding came with one condition, introduced by the councilman that he hopes will encourage residents of his district to participate in the project.
Private equity firm MLSA Ventures, managed by investor Robert Magee, purchased the building at 401 Villita St. in 2024 and announced plans to integrate the building into the River Walk.
Escalera Capital, another firm Magee manages, is involved in the project which seeks to turn the iconic, circular building into a food hall with the help of Onset Hospitality.
Opened in 1958, Villita Assembly Hall has through the years served as an event center, hosting gatherings and events throughout the year, including the annual Night in Old San Antonio (NIOSA) though it won’t be returning in 2027.
Renovation plans that received conceptual approval from the Historic and Design Review Commission two years ago call for a barrier between the assembly hall and Villita Street to be removed.
“This is an opportunity to connect history to history, and that’s what we’re talking about today,” said attorney James McKnight representing Escalara, in a briefing for the TIRZ board on Nov. 6.
He called the wall between the river and the building an economic and cultural barrier that limits foot traffic to the artisans’ shops in La Villita Historic Arts District.
A wide stairway would connect the Assembly Building to a lower plaza and the River Walk, according to the plans, and replace a switchback ramp with a public elevator and rebuild public restrooms.
“The assembly hall sits at the point where the Riverwalk, the Arneson [River Theater] and La Villita should meet yet today the site’s layout interrupts the natural connection,” said Alex Cerna, owner of the arts store Yolix Luna.
The proposed plans, she added, are “not decorative; it is a public infrastructure. This is exactly the kind of project that the Inner City TIRZ has always supported … and is a great opportunity for us.”
The Villita Assembly Building is currently valued on tax rolls at $6 million, McKnight said, which translates to about $35,000 annually in property taxes.
He estimated that within the first three years that the building is in operation, it would be valued at $47 million, an increase of about eight times in taxes on the property.
Before approving the request, McKee-Rodriguez said he takes issue with the fact that the mostly Eastside TIRZ boundary appears to have been drawn deliberately to capture La Villita for funding purposes.
Seeking to obtain benefit for his district out of the agreement, the councilman proposed an amendment to the agreement that would require that half of all rotating galleries, pop-up kiosks and artist showcases be leased to artisans who reside in District 2.
The board agreed and unanimously approved the request which must now go before council for final approval.
“My mom is going to be very excited about this project, believe it or not,” said TIRZ board member Mohammad Rasool. When they visit the River Walk, “she literally will tell me she’s upset about those stairs. So I’m happy to give her a call and say we’re finally going to do something about that.”
Also at the meeting, the board approved a request by Gardopia Gardens for its facility expansion project for $350,000, and heard a briefing on a potential joint funding request from Southstar for the Lone Star Brewery project.
The Inner City TIRZ in August approved support for an Eastside Senior Center and natatorium that will be funded with $46 million backed by the TIRZ funds.
