DEPARTMENT: Planning Department
DEPARTMENT HEAD: Bridgett White, AICP
COUNCIL DISTRICTS IMPACTED: District 3
SUBJECT:
Consideration of an ordinance adopting the Brooks Area Regional Center Plan as a component of the City’s Comprehensive Master Plan.
SUMMARY:
Consideration of an ordinance adopting the Brooks Area Regional Center Plan as a component of the City’s Comprehensive Master Plan. The Brooks Area Regional Center Plan aims to create a realistic and implementable strategy to address projected growth in the Brooks Area Regional Center, one of thirteen (13) Regional Centers identified in the SA Tomorrow Comprehensive Plan.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
The SA Tomorrow Comprehensive Plan is one of three growth-related plans addressing how the City of San Antonio’s expected population growth will be balanced with social, economic, and environmental resources. The Comprehensive Plan provides strategic direction for decision making and public investment to prepare the San Antonio community for anticipated growth. The major “building blocks” of the Comprehensive Plan include:
• Regional Centers
• Urban Centers
• Corridors
• Neighborhoods
The Brooks Area Regional Center Plan aims to create a realistic and implementable strategy to address projected growth in the Brooks Area Regional Center, one of the thirteen (13) Regional Centers identified in the SA Tomorrow Comprehensive Plan. Anchored by the redevelopment of the Brooks campus, this area is one of San Antonio’s emerging activity centers and a major catalyst for growth on the south side of the City. The main topics covered by the Plan include Land Use, Mobility, Amenities and Infrastructure, Focus Areas/Corridors, Catalytic Projects, Economic Development, and Housing.
The Brooks Area Regional Center Plan covers the area generally bound by Interstate Highway 37, South New Braunfels Avenue, East Southcross Boulevard, South Presa Street, and Southton Road to the west; Shane Road and South Presa Street to the south; the city limit line, South W. W. White Road, Southeast Military Drive, Salado Creek, and Pecan Valley Drive to the east; and Meadowlark Avenue, Hiawatha, Clark Avenue, and Fair Avenue to the north.
As success of the Sub-Area Plan depends on broad participation from area stakeholders, Planning Department staff worked with a wide range of community members throughout the planning process. These included neighborhood associations, business and property owners, residents, employers, educational and cultural institutions, public and nonprofit organizations, and other City departments. In addition, a formal Planning Team was created to provide more frequent, in -depth, and consistent advice and guidance throughout the planning process. The Brooks Area Regional Center Planning Team includes:
• Andrew Aguiano, South San Antonio Chamber of Commerce
• Kathy Jo Almenderez, Mission Trail Baptist Hospital
• Joanie Barborak, Bond Initiative
• Linda Cavazos, East Central Independent School District
• Belinda Gonzalez, Pre-K 4 SA
• Officer Sgt. Curtis Walker/ Officer Carlos Guillen, San Antonio Police Department - South
• Yvette Hernandez, SATX Social Ride / Monte Viejo
• Dr. Mary Hogan, University of Incarnate Word School of Osteopathic Medicine
• Nicole Hoyt, Southeast Community Outreach for Older People
• Captain Wes Jendrusch, San Antonio Fire Department
• Kyle Knickerbocker, San Antonio River Authority
• Michelle Krupa, Monte Viejo Neighborhood
• Ken Kuwamura, Hot Wells Conservancy
• James Lifschutz, Lifschutz Companies
• Marques Mitchell, Brooks Development Authority
• Pamela Morganroth, Highland Forest Neighborhood Association
• Katie Otten, Hot Wells Resident
• Jesse Pacheco, South Central Alliance of Neighborhoods
• Patti Rangel, San Antonio State Hospital
• Dolores Rios, Parents as Partners
• Angela Saenz, Heritage Oaks at Brooks
• Frank Salinas, Jr., Calumet Specialty Products Partners, LLP
• Alfred Segura, Jr., New Frontiers Public Schools
• Jennifer Tiller, Holy Name Catholic School
• Liz Trainor, Highland Hills Neighborhood Association
• Christine Viña, AIA, VIA Metropolitan Transit
• Anthony Willis, Mission Solar
ISSUE:
A Public Draft of the Brooks Area Regional Center Plan was released to the public for comment on December 14, 2018 and public input was gathered through January 14, 2019. Comments received by January 14th were considered for incorporation into the Administrative Draft for the adoption process, which is currently available online.
On February 12, 2019, the Planning Department presented the Brooks Area Regional Center Plan to the Comprehensive Plan Committee of City Council at a specially scheduled meeting. The Comprehensive Plan Committee unanimously voted to forward the Brooks Area Regional Center Plan to the Planning Commission at their regularly scheduled meeting on February 20, 2019. The Planning Commission received a briefing on March 13, 2019. The Planning Commission held a public hearing on March 27, 2019 and voted unanimously to forward the document to City Council for approval with staff’s recommended edits which were made available to the public through the Planning Commission Agenda website.
The Brooks Area Regional Center Plan is organized around a “Plan Framework” that includes Land Use, Focus Areas, Mobility, Amenities and Infrastructure, Catalytic Projects, Housing, and Economic Development. Each plan framework element includes an overview that provides context and findings, as well as recommendations and implementation strategies. The Brooks Area Regional Center Plan also includes Neighborhood Profiles and Priorities, which were developed to provide special attention to prior planning efforts and to address specific priorities of participating neighborhoods.
If adopted as a component of the City’s Comprehensive Master Plan, the Brooks Area Regional Center Plan shall control over any conflict with the Heritage South Sector Plan, the Stinson Airport Vicinity Plan, the Highlands Community Plan, and the South Central San Antonio Community Plan, where the plans overlap.
ALTERNATIVES:
City Council can choose not to adopt the Brooks Area Regional Center Plan as a component of the City’s Comprehensive Master Plan. However, this action would delay implementation of the SA Tomorrow Comprehensive Plan and would require staff to develop a new regional center plan for the Brooks Area.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no immediate fiscal impact associated with the adoption of the Brooks Area Regional Center Plan. The Plan does provide strategies and prioritization for public and private investment over the next 10-15 years.
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff and Planning Commission recommend the Brooks Area Regional Center Plan, with all staff recommended revisions, be adopted as a component of the City’s Comprehensive Master Plan for a 13.4 square mile area generally bound by Interstate Highway 37, South New Braunfels Avenue, East Southcross Boulevard, South Presa Street, and Southton Road to the west; Shane Road and South Presa Street to the south; the city limit line, South W. W. White Road, Southeast Military Drive, Salado Creek, and Pecan Valley Drive to the east; and Meadowlark Avenue, Hiawatha, Clark Avenue, and Fair Avenue to the north.