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Fiesta de los Reyes in Market Square will have a $5 entry fee for the first time after approval from the San Antonio City Council Thursday.
The vote centered on an amendment to the agreement between the City of San Antonio and the Rey Feo Consejo Educational Foundation, which organizes Fiesta de los Reyes. It runs for 10 days and draws more than 250,000 visitors to Market Square.
The vote was 7-4, with District 5 Councilwoman Teri Castillo, District 2 Councilman Jalen McKee-Rodriguez, District 6 Councilman Ric Galvan, and Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones voting against the proposal.
The fee will apply to people ages 13 and older. It will be in effect after 1 p.m. on weekends and on Battle of Flowers Friday, and after 6 p.m. on weekdays during Fiesta. Those who arrive outside of those times will not have to pay the fee.
“If you’re in line at 5:45, 5:55, you can get in without paying. We provide a lot of opportunities for entertainment and for families to come down, and we would just hope that a lot of people would come to support it,” said Thomas Aguillion, a board member for the foundation.
Like all Fiesta events, Fiesta de los Reyes is a nonprofit event and serves as a fundraiser for the organization. The fees would go toward security costs after the foundation added additional measures following two shootings in 2023 and 2024.
“Prioritizing safety came at a cost. Fiesta de los Reyes incurred a loss of approximately $143,000 due to increased security expenses,” said Elaine de los Santos, interim executive director for the foundation.
De los Santos said the foundation spends about $1 million on the event and nets about $85,000 that goes toward annual scholarships.
Mayor Jones, who voted against the fee, said the return the foundation sees should be reevaluated.
“Spending a million dollars to raise $85,000 is like spending $1,000 to raise $85, so I know we’re going to have additional conversations about what security needs to look like, and who funds it, but also welcome the Consejo’s thoughts and input on maybe a different model that helps to generate more revenue,” Jones said.
Under the agreement, the entry fee would generate about $400,000. The first $250,000 would go directly to the Consejo for security costs. The rest would be split between the city and the Consejo. The Consejo would receive 75%, and the city would get 25%. Under early estimates, the city would receive about $37,000.
In total, the city spent about $730,000 on Market Square during Fiesta in 2025 for existing security and cleanup costs.
Shop owners in Market Square were adamantly opposed to the fee. Yvette Ramirez is president of the Farmers Market Plaza Association.
“Market Square was established as a free and public space for the people of San Antonio. Allowing any third party to control access to a historic, cultural public asset sets a dangerous precedent,” she said. “Once the door is open to privatizing a public space, it raises questions about what other public spaces in San Antonio could be subjected to the same treatment in the future.”
Councilman McKee-Rodriguez said he believed conversations around the fee and the people it would affect border on elitism.
“You see people saying things like, oh, ‘this will finally keep the ‘Edgars’ out.’ And I have to call that what it is, which is racist and classist,” he said, referring to a viral meme tied to a bowl-style haircut and often used as a stereotype of young Latino men.
McKee-Rodriguez had asked if it was possible for the city to absorb the costs of the additional security measures, fencing, and bag checks. However, city staff said it was not in the current budget to do so.
Fiesta officially begins Thursday, April 16, and Fiesta de los Reyes kicks off the next day in Market Square.
