Board OKs city tax dollars for Spurs arena land, zoo hospital as critics say vote betrays money's intended use

The recently renovated front entrance greets visitors to the San Antonio Zoo.

Credit: Courtesy Photo / San Antonio Zoo The board of one the city's tax zones on Friday approved allocating $170 million in future property tax revenue for projects ranging from the purchase of land at Hemisfair to build a new Spurs arena to the construction of a state-of-the-art animal hospital for the San Antonio Zoo.

The board of the Midtown Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ), chaired by District 1 Councilwoman Sukh Kaur, voted 7-4 to fund the projects - even as some questioned whether the expenditures were appropriate use of the tax money.