A zoning change that would allow a nonprofit to build a 201-unit affordable housing complex for chronically homeless individuals called Acequia Trails on the near South Side of San Antonio has been delayed, according to officials.
Council was slated to vote on the change Thursday, but that vote is now scheduled for March 7 at the request of local nonprofit SAMMinistries, which provides housing and other services for people experiencing homelessness, and Councilwoman Phyllis Viagran (D3), whose district includes the project site.
It’s the latest in a string of funding and administrative delays for the proposed project.
Residents in the Hot Wells neighborhood have said they were unaware of plans for the Acequia Trails complex until after Bexar County Commissioners Court delayed nearly $4 million in funding for it in December. The project already received about $11 million from the City of San Antonio’s 2022 bond last year.
It’s unclear if the county will fund the project.
The funding is slated to go before the court for a vote on March 12, said Robert Reyna, community development director for the county’s Economic and Community Development Department.
Commissioner Tommy Calvert (Pct. 4), who initiated the funding delay and whose district includes Acequia Trails, declined to comment through a spokesperson.
SAMMinistries’ request to rezone the now-vacant, 7-acre property was delayed by the Zoning Commission in late December after some residents pushed back against the project. Among their concerns was the high saturation of subsidized housing in the South Side. In January, the commission voted in favor of the rezoning request, which ultimately requires City Council approval.
On Monday, Hot Wells Neighborhood Association President Brady Alexander sent an open letter to Viagran requesting a six-to-eight week delay of the vote, “to give the community adequate time to absorb and discuss this proposal.”
The nonprofit plans to provide “permanent supportive housing” at Acequia Trails, akin to the model at its Hudson Apartments on the North Side, which both the city and county have funded. The “low-barrier” housing does not require sobriety and comes with on-site supportive services like physical and mental health care, addiction counseling and food for people who are chronically homeless and have a disabling condition.
Increasing this type of housing is one of the core components of the community’s strategy to end homelessness and help relieve capacity pressures at local homeless shelters.
Acequia Trails will account for 7 of the roughly 55 acres requested for the zoning change and there are no final plans for the remaining land. It’s currently owned by Brooks Development Authority, but SAMMinistiries aims to acquire the rest over the next decade or so and the project could include a public park, human services additional housing and employment opportunities for residents.
