SAN ANTONIO – Assistant City Manager Lori Houston, a key architect of the controversial Project Marvel, is retiring from the City of San Antonio after a 23 years.
City Manager Erik Walsh acknowledged Houston’s departure in a Friday afternoon email to the city executive team. Her last day at the city is Sept. 26.
Houston has been a central figure in developing numerous downtown projects. She told KSAT she plans to focus on her family before working part-time as an advisor with consulting firm ULTRAte Strategy.
“I really have a good 15 years left in me because I’m only 47,” Houston said in a Friday afternoon phone interview. “So, I think I’m going to really just figure out, you know…what do I want to do for that next chapter?“
Houston is one of five assistant city managers. She was appointed to the role in July 2015 and oversees four departments: Historic Preservations, Human Services, Neighborhood and Housing Services, and Center City Development and Operations — the last of which she previously led.
Other departments she has overseen include Arts & Culture, Library, Planning and the World Heritage Office.
During her tenure at the city, Houston oversaw design and construction of the San Antonio River Improvements Project, led the city’s Alamo redevelopment efforts, planned and implemented the city’s first housing bond and created a city housing assistance program that helped struggling residents cover bills during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Walsh credited Houston with having “spearheaded” the planning and development of Project Marvel, the city’s plan to create sports and entertainment district in Hemisfair, including a new Spurs arena.
As early plans progressed behind closed doors, open records show Houston reached out to several real estate and consulting companies. Once Project Marvel became public in November 2024, it was Houston who briefed the city council.
Her departure comes on the heels of a “milestone” in the contentious fight over the proposed Spurs arena.
On Aug. 21, over the objections of San Antonio Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones, council members passed a non-binding set of terms for funding the $1.3 billion arena. The deal sets up the framework for funding a large part of the project with public money from the city and Bexar County.
Jones and three other council members wanted to hold off until an “independent” economic impact study had been done and more public input gathered, but they were outvoted 7-4.
The next step in the project is a November election on the county’s share of the funding. Houston said the team and county would “take that on.”
“So, because we got that big milestone done, I felt that it was a good time to take a step back,” she said of the Aug. 21 vote. “Because, like I said, the next one was really the election, getting that through. And Erik Walsh and (Chief of Financial and Administrative Services) Ben Gorzell are brilliant, and they’ll be able to move forward without me.“
Houston told KSAT she had planned to retire in January anyway but family matters moved up her plans.
Beyond Project Marvel, Houston listed some of her favorite projects as the Museum Reach expansion on the San Antonio River, working with former Mayor Phil Hardberger on the Hemisfair Park Area Redevelopment Corporation, the partnership that helped build the Frost Tower downtown and consolidating city offices in the now-City Tower.
“I think the area I grew most was working in the affordable housing and homeless services space,” Houston said. “That was a great learning experience for me and something I became very passionate about and something I see myself working on in the future.”
Houston said she did not plan to come back to work for the city and did not know what kind of work she would be focusing on at ULTRAte.
In a statement emailed by a city spokesperson, Walsh praised Houston’s time with the city.
“During her career with the City, Lori has taken on some extraordinarily challenging projects and used her ability to cultivate relationships to bring parties together to achieve mutually beneficial results,” Walsh said. “From the Alamo to the Riverwalk to Hemisfair, she’s helped transform Downtown in a way that benefits us all. After 23 years, her retirement is well-earned, and I wish her the best as she embarks on her next chapter.”
Read Walsh’s Friday email to the city executive team below.
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