SAN ANTONIO – Funds for two projects linked to addressing connectivity between downtown San Antonio and the greater East Side remain under federal review, according to a nonprofit and city officials.
Earlier this year, San Antonio for Growth on the Eastside (SAGE) received $2 million from the then-U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) Secretary Pete Buttigieg’s administration to draft a planning study exploring the burying, capping and connecting of four areas along Interstates 10, 35 and 37 across the East Side.
The funds were sourced from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law under the Biden Administration.
At the same time, the larger USDOT program, the Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program (RCP), was established to “help reconnect communities previously cut off from economic opportunities by transportation infrastructure,” according to a RCP project page. Both projects are considered RCP projects.
However, both have since come under fire from current Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and President Donald Trump.
After being sworn in as USDOT Secretary, Duffy issued a call to eliminate what he described as “woke policies” across the department. A funding freeze early in the Trump administration also paused grant dispersal.
Last Tuesday, Streetsblog USA reported that the U.S. House Transportation Committee proposed to rescind all “not-yet-obligated” funds in the Neighborhood Access and Equity Program. The RCP is housed within the program.
The legislation would repeal up to $3.1 billion in RCP funding, according to Transportation for America, a national nonprofit working in the transportation and land use policy space.
How could this affect San Antonio?
In an email to KSAT last week, SAGE’s Executive Director James Nortey said he does not believe the nonprofit’s funds will be rescinded despite the Trump and USDOT administrations’ new direction.
“Ultimately, this grant is focused on economic development and small businesses, which still align with the administration’s goals,” Nortey said.
However, Nortey said that grant implementation was moving “much slower than our preference.”
Nortey said the award’s rollout was delayed as USDOT officials looked closely at grant agreement templates and award materials “to ensure compliance with the executive orders and the administration’s direction.”
In early April, Nortey said SAGE received word from the RCP team that rollout for the award was delayed to allow a closer look at grant agreement templates and award materials and ensure they complied with the Trump administration’s executive orders.
Then, on April 24, Nortey said SAGE received a letter from Duffy saying, “We need to comply with law enforcement in enforcing immigration law and not discriminating based on a protected class.”
USDOT issued a news release on the same day, ensuring recipients of federal funds stay in compliance with federal laws or face “enforcement actions.”
The letter specifically mentions guidelines and compliance around immigration and diversity, equity and inclusion measures.
A USDOT spokesperson, in an email to KSAT, did not clarify questions regarding what the department meant by “enforcement actions.” Instead, KSAT was referred to the department’s news release and the letter sent to grant recipients.
“We received no correspondence explicitly stating that SAGE’s award would be rescinded,” Nortey said.
District 2 Councilman Jalen McKee-Rodriguez, recently reelected to his third term on council, has been a staunch supporter of such investment in his district.
“I remain hopeful that these much-needed resources to better understand and plan how we re-connect the Eastside and downtown will remain here in our community,” McKee-Rodriguez said in an emailed statement Wednesday. “San Antonio has already faced deeply harmful cuts in grants and programming, and these acts prove that all levels of government impact us at the local level.”
McKee-Rodriguez also said his office had not received any indication that the RCP award was in danger of being rescinded.
Connectivity remains a concern on San Antonio’s East Side
SAGE’s planning grant is not the only project exploring capping highways. Another project is connected to one of downtown San Antonio’s most-talked-about subjects.
Project Marvel — the city’s plan to develop a sports and entertainment district at Hemisfair — also includes a proposed land bridge over Interstate 37, connecting the area around the Alamodome to a forthcoming entertainment district at Hemisfair.
Last March, the city received $3 million from the RCP program to address connectivity between downtown and the East Side.
The funding was secured before the city officially confirmed conceptual plans around the project, though talks of a land bridge go as far back as April 2024, according to records obtained by KSAT.
A map compiled by Transportation for America displayed on its website includes the East Side to downtown connector project, linked to Project Marvel, on the list of projects that could be affected. See the map in the embed below.
According to Transportation for America’s map, the project is considered “safe,” with its respective funds obligated.
However, a city spokesperson said officials were told “all pending grants are under review.”
“The City of San Antonio has not received any formal communication regarding the $2.96M Reconnecting Communities grant awarded to study connections between Downtown and the East Side,” the spokesperson said in an emailed statement on Thursday.
The statement said city staff remains in contact with USDOT officials and will “continue to monitor the situation.”
The spokesperson said its consultant selection process was ongoing, with hopes to present to City Council later this summer, “provided we get the green light from the federal government.”
“We pursue grants for which we have a strong application for a project that aligns with both City Council and the relevant federal agency’s priorities,” the city’s statement said.
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