City of San Antonio Winter Holiday Closures

From Saturday, December 24, 2011 through Sunday, January 1, 2012 the City will observe a Winter Holiday schedule. During that week, the City will formally observe five holidays, Christmas, New Year’s Day, and three designated Winter Holidays.

While most City Staff will not work during the holiday closures, several departments will be open to ensure ongoing provision of key services to the residents of San Antonio.
Animal Care, Aviation, Alamodome, Convention center, CVB, 311 Operators, Parks, Libraries, Metro health, Solid waste, and development services all have adjusted schedules.

Public safety and emergency services will remain in operation.

For more information regarding the Winter Holiday Schedule visit the City Website.

Wishing you and your family a safe and happy holiday season.

2012-2017 Proposed Bond Program

After two months, an important portion of the 2012-2017 Proposed Bond Program’s public input process has been concluded, with the completion of 20 public meetings consisting of 16 Community Bond Meetings and four Community Bond Tours. During the public process, over 800 residents were in attendance at the meetings, and 165 resident comments were made. Overall, the Committee Members found the public process to be well organized, successful and transparent.

Overall, the Community Bond Committee Members recommended 135 projects for the proposed $596 Million 2012-2017 Bond Program. A detailed list of the recommended projects can be found at http://www.sanantonio.gov/2012Bond/.

The next steps in the development of the proposed Bond Program will be the presentation and discussion of the Community Bond Committee Recommendations on January 11, 2012 within a City Council “B” Session. Following this presentation, the City Council will consider the recommendations made by the committees. Upon approval of the projects, City Council will call a special election for the proposed bond program for Saturday, May 12, 2012.

$30 Million Excess Bond Projects

On February 19, 2009, City Council approved the $30 Million Excess Bond Balance Program with a total of 97 projects. Funding for these projects are the result of the identification of remaining balances in various bonds and certificate of obligation funds that required disposition and could be reprogrammed. These projects are grouped into three categories:

2007 Bond Program Augmentation – This category includes projects that 1) achieve the initial intended scope, or 2) further enhance improvements, for projects within the 2007 Bond Program. The budget for this category totals $12.1 million and consists of 11 projects. An example of this type of project is the Mission Branch Library Project in Council District 3.

Public Works’ Managed Projects – This category includes local street improvements, curbs, sidewalks, traffic system improvements, and drainage improvements. The budget for this category totals $8.9 million and consists of 66 projects. An example of this type of project is the Mainland Road Improvements Project in Council District 7.

Other Projects – This category includes improvements such as BRAC-related enhancements, Haven for Hope improvements, and park improvements. The budget for this category totals $7.2 million and consists of 20 projects.

As of today 95% of the projects are complete with 80% of the total program’s budget spent

- 91 projects have been completed
- 4 projects are under construction or under contract for construction
- 2 projects are under design
- For a Total of 97

The projects under design or construction are estimated to be completed in 2012.

FY2012 Budget Highlights Brochure

The FY 2012 Annual Adopted Operating and Capital Budget document along with the Adopted Budget Highlight Brochure is now available.

The FY 2012 Budget is balanced and invests additional resources in City Council priorities including Police, Fire, Streets, Libraries, Animal Care and Economic Development. The FY 2012 Budget includes no City property tax rate increase and maintains the budgeted financial reserves at 9 percent of General Fund Expenditures.


The FY 2011 Operating and Capital Budget is available online and copies are available at the Central Library, each Branch Library, and Community Link Centers for public reference. Copies of the City's Budget document have been submitted to the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) to be considered for the Distinguished Budget Presentation Award. This award recognizes budget documents of the very highest quality that reflect GFOA's recommended best practices.

The FY 2012 Budget Highlights brochure provides a high level summary of the Adopted Budget and the program changes that will impact the community. This brochure is in both English and Spanish.

Copies of this brochure are available at all Libraries and City Offices.

Riverwalk Capital Improvements and LED Holiday Lighting Program

The River Walk Capital Improvements Master Plan was finalized in 2008, and identified a prioritized list of capital improvements with an estimated total cost of $15 million to be constructed over four phases. The Master Plan identified the infrastructure needs for the historic river bend to include sidewalks, stairs, lighting upgrades, walkway retaining walls, and a number of aesthetic improvements.

A total of $3.5 million was spent on Phase I which was completed in March 2010. This phase made the entire River Walk ADA accessible from S. Alamo to the Museum Reach. Phase II is currently underway with a $3.6 million program. Work began in March 2011 and is estimated to be completed by May 2012. Improvements for the phase included the Chamber of Commerce area, La Mansion fountain to Presa St. linkage and the Commerce Street Bridge area which will begin in January 2012. The FY 2012 budget included $2.5 million for Phase III with an estimated start date of June 2012.
Complementing these capital improvements, are the holiday lighting improvements on the Riverwalk, creating a new holiday experience through the use of green technologies. The enhanced lighting replaces 85,000 multi-color incandescent bulbs with 1.8 million LED mini-bulbs. As part of the City’s commitment to long-term sustainability of resources, this 100% LED conversion features 20 times more lights and uses less than half the energy of the traditional incandescent lighting.

The project also includes the addition of multi-color programmable holiday accent lighting on street bridges from Lexington to the International Center. The holiday lighting officially begins on November 25 at the Holiday River Parade and lighting ceremony, we invite residents and visitors to enjoy our annual holiday spectacle.

4th Annual Rock 'n' Roll Marathon

San Antonio hosted the 4th annual Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon on Sunday, Nov. 13. Events included a full and a half marathon; a half marathon relay; a wheelchair invitational; and, new this year, a 22-mile Bike Tour. This year’s event had 30,495 registered participants, with 23,822 finishers. Runners from all 50 states were represented in the field.

David Fuentes, 25 year old former standout in cross country at Boerne High School (now living in Austin TX), crossed the finish line in first. Liza Hunter-Galvan, 42 year old two-time Olympian was the first woman to cross the line.

Vince Neil was the headliner at the Finish Line Festival, with some 50 bands performing along the route throughout the day; many of the performers were local.

This year, the marathon’s exclusive national charity is Susan G. Komen for the Cure. We estimate between 35,000 to 40,000 out-of-town visitors. These visitors would occupy an estimated 30,000 hotel rooms over the Marathon weekend. The impact from this year’s event has not been completed, but the marathon is expected to have an approximate $40 million economic impact.

Our thanks to Several City Departments including SAPD, SAFD, Downtown Operations, Public Works, Development Services, Solid Waste, Convention Sports & Entertainment Facilities, Convention & Visitors Bureau, Parks and Recreation, and other entities worked with Competitor Group to ensure a safe and successful event.

Animal Care Services Update

The implementation of the comprehensive rescue strategy by Animal Care Services Department is underway. The live release rate (Which includes adoptions, rescue, and return to owners) was at a record high of 44% in October 2011 compared to 28% in October 2010. This increase from last year to this year is primarily due to the following increases:

• A 14% increase in Adoptions (326 adoptions to 373 adoptions),


• A 166% increase in rescues (181 rescues to 482 rescues)


• And a 35% increase in Return to Owners (100 returns to 135 returns).


• The number of animals Impounded was also up by 5%
  

The increased rescue rate is enhanced by a pilot program with San Antonio Humane Society and additional rescues from Austin Pets Alive.

In an effort to continue our comprehensive rescue strategy, ACS conducted sweeps of Area 1 (District 5, 6, and 7) in October resulting in the following:

• 225 hours of volunteers knocking on over 2,000 homes in the area


• ACS impounded 127 animals


• 354 spay/neuter surgeries were performed in Area 1


• Area 1 sweeps is still ongoing and the Department will continue to impound additional animals

The next comprehensive sweep will take place in Area 2. This area consists of District 4 & 5. The sweeps will begin this weekend (November 18th-20th) with comprehensive activities in November and December. Outreach to Area 3, which is District 2 & 3, will begin In December 2011 with comprehensive activities in January 2012.