DEPARTMENT: Planning Department
DEPARTMENT HEAD: Bridgett White, AICP
COUNCIL DISTRICTS IMPACTED: District 3
SUBJECT:
The Brooks Area Regional Center Plan
SUMMARY:
Consideration of a resolution recommending the Brooks Area Regional Center Plan to City Council to become a component of the City’s Comprehensive Master Plan. (Bridgett White, Director, Planning Department)
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.
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.
ISSUE:
A Public Draft of the 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: brooks.sacompplan.com <https://brooks.sacompplan.com/files/Brooks_Administrative_Draft_01.30.19_Complete.pdf>. On February 12, 2019, the Planning Department presented the Brooks Area Regional Center Plan to the Comprehensive Plan Committee of City Council. The Planning Commission received a briefing on March 8, 2019.
Attached to this agenda item is an updated version of the Administrative Draft that represents staff’s recommendation. Edits are tracked, with deletions in red and additions in blue. Edits include grammatical corrections, clarifications, and incorporated public comments.
The item is tentatively scheduled to be considered by City Council on May 2, 2109. Staff will continue to receive and document public comment until City Council consideration.
FISCAL IMPACT:
None.
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends approval of a resolution recommending the Brooks Area Regional Center Plan to City Council to become 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.
ALTERNATIVES:
1. Recommend Denial of the proposed resolution recommending the Brooks Area Regional Center Plan to City Council.
2. Make an alternate recommendation.
3. Continue to a future date.