When Netflix Discovered UT San Antonio
Article 3 of a 5-part series on UT San Antonio’s hidden talent pipeline Once you spend a day recruiting our students, you stop thinking about what San Antonio doesn’t have, and you start seeing everything it does. That’s exactly what happened when I reached out to Netflix. I knew our students had the talent to […]
When Facebook (Meta) Came to UT San Antonio
Article 2 of a 5-part series on UT San Antonio’s hidden talent pipeline When Meta (Facebook) came to recruit at UT San Antonio for the first time, the recruiter arrived polite but skeptical. We had been trying to bring them here for a while. Getting big tech companies to visit wasn’t easy because we weren’t […]
There’s a Tech Talent Boom Happening Under Our Noses
Article 1 of a 5-part series on UT San Antonio’s hidden talent pipeline My friend Diego Bernal once told me, “Talent is evenly distributed, but opportunity is not.” It’s one of those lines that stays with you, a sentence that explains an entire city in eight words. I thought I understood what he meant when […]
The John H. Wood Jr. Event Center: SA Sports District Project 2 of 7
This article is part of a 12-part series by the Urban Nerd (Lorenzo Gomez), exploring the seven projects that make up the San Antonio Sports and Entertainment District. The last article is where we started breaking down each of the seven projects that make up the San Antonio Sports and Entertainment District, also known as […]
The Convention Center Expansion: SA Sports District Project 1 of 7
Article 6 of a 12-part series by the Urban Nerd (Lorenzo Gomez) The first five articles in this series were all about cutting through the confusion. We talked about who’s really paying for what, why the city’s deficit is a different problem entirely, and why so many people get lost in the Marvel Garble. And […]
Three Arenas, Three Purposes: Myths, Mistakes, & a District Future
(This is Part 5 in a 12-part series on San Antonio’s Sports & Entertainment District, aka Project Marvel.) Of all the issues people raise about Project Marvel, nothing sparks louder debate than the so-called “three arenas.” The comment threads light up, the arguments spiral, and the criticism is fierce. Beneath all that noise, though, are […]
Explore the Core: Downtown West District
For decades, San Antonio’s central business district — downtown proper — felt like occupied territory. With nearly 90% of the foot traffic driven by tourists, it was easy to assume the area was off-limits to locals unless they were clocking in. But that’s changing. A new neighborhood energy is emerging in Downtown West, clawing back […]
The Billion Dollar Question: Who Really Pays for the Spurs Arena?
(It’s Not Your Pothole Fund.) This is Part 4 in a 12-part series on San Antonio’s Sports & Entertainment District, aka Project Marvel. In order to understand how the new Spurs arena will be funded, take a little ride with me. Meet two characters heading to the future San Antonio Sports & Entertainment District (aka […]
Three Years of Fear: When Students Turn Stories Into Healing
Seven years ago, I was lucky enough to be sitting at a table with some of the most creative people in San Antonio education, the Cast Network and friends. We were brainstorming and dreaming about opportunities for kids. We shared memories from our own middle and high school experiences, and Lorenzo Gomez’s book, Tafolla Toro: […]
Divorcing the Sports District from the City’s Deficit
This is Part 3 in a 12-part series on San Antonio’s Sports and Entertainment District, also known as Project Marvel. One of my favorite quotes comes from the movie Raising Arizona. An inmate, watching a couple argue, leans over to another inmate and says, “I wouldn’t be surprised if the source of the marital friction […]