San Antonio Standard

WASHINGTON – On April 18, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20) announced that his office has submitted more than $60 million in community project funding requests for the Fiscal Year 2024 federal appropriations cycle. If the requests are included in appropriations bills, passed in the House of Representatives and the Senate and signed into law, the funding will invest in affordable housing expansion, workforce development initiatives, renovations at the South San Civic Center, the construction of walkable streets on the Port San Antonio campus, flood mitigation at Concepcion Creek, overnight parking at San Antonio International Airport, research at UT Health San Antonio to develop treatments for liver disease, and more.

“Since the Community Project Funding process launched in 2021, I’ve been proud to bring tens of millions of dollars back home to San Antonio for community-led projects,” said Congressman Castro. “Now, as Congress begins the 2024 federal funding process, I’m excited to advocate for new investments in San Antonio. The projects my office submitted this year – from affordable housing development to groundbreaking research at UT Health San Antonio – will improve quality of life and create opportunity across our city.”

The community projects requests submitted by Congressman Castro for the Fiscal Year 2024 appropriations bills include:

Affordable Housing Development & Rehabilitation

Opportunity Home San Antonio

Critical Needs Infrastructure for Affordable/Workforce Housing Communities

The funding would be used for maintenance, renovations and critical repairs identified through conducting a physical needs assessment at two properties owned by Opportunities Home San Antonio. The rehabilitation of these properties will help preserve affordable housing stock in San Antonio.

Amount of Request: $1,900,000

City Public Service

SaveNow Casa Verde Weatherization Program

This project aims to expand the reach and impact of Casa Verde, an energy efficiency program by CPS Energy for low-income residents in San Antonio that provides insulation and weatherization services for homes. Currently, some homes require additional repairs that can make applicants ineligible for the program. This project would fund those repairs, enabling more residents to participate in the Casa Verde program and lower their energy costs.

Amount of Request: $1,000,000

Merced Housing Texas

Project Building Up!

The funding would be used to repair the homes of low-income homeowners in 20th District of Texas. The homes will be renovated to address ADA modifications, reduce energy consumption, and remedy safety issues, among other concerns, to provide better living conditions for homeowners.

Amount of Request: $1,000,000

San Antonio Metropolitan Ministry, Inc. dba SAMMinistries

Uplifting and Empowering Families through Energy Efficiency

The funding would be used for a rehabilitation project aimed at improving the energy efficiency of the Transitional Living and Learning Center at SAMMinistries. The project will help modernize the 60-year-old building by replacing old windows and installing select Packaged Terminal Air Conditioners, among other renovations.

Amount of Request: $765,081

Workforce Development, Education, and Community Life

LiftFund Inc.

Community Economic Empowerment Project

This funding would be used to rehabilitate a building in an economically disadvantaged neighborhood into a Community Economic Empowerment Center.

Amount of Request: $2,000,000

Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA)

Women’s Live and Learn Center: Workforce Development and Housing for Women

This funding would be used to rehabilitate a building to provide secure housing and enable people to enroll in post-secondary and workforce certification education, and training.

Amount of Request: $1,500,000

The County of Bexar

South San Civic Center Renovation

This funding would be used to renovate, update, and correct the South San Civic Center to accommodate residents and be in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Amount of Request: $750,000

Bexar County Commissioners Court

BiblioTech Lerma’s Parking Lot Redevelopment

This funding would be used to acquire property to redevelop the land to create a parking lot and enable access to the BiblioTech Digital Library. Bexar County’s BiblioTech is the first all-digital public library in the United States, and the digital library helps improve surrounding neighborhoods and bridge the digital divide throughout San Antonio.

Amount of Request: $250,000

City of San Antonio

Las Palmas Library Branch New Learn Center Construction

The San Antonio public library system’s Learn facilities are designed to help adults with workforce development skills and assist them with career goals and other professional development opportunities, including resume writing and job search. This project would fund the construction of a new Learn Center at the Las Palmas library that would eventually support residents of San Antonio with workforce development programs and serve as a community center.

Amount of Request: $135,000

Transportation, Environment & Public Services

City of San Antonio

San Antonio International Airport – Remain Overnight Aircraft Parking

The Remain Overnight (RON) Parking Relocation project will support the growth of the San Antonio International Airport by allowing apron space currently used for aircraft parking RON to move to a new location to allow for the construction site of a New Terminal and relocate a needed expansion of RON space to accommodate existing and future airline partners.

Amount of Request: $18,750,000

Port Authority of San Antonio

Port San Antonio Complete Streets Conversion

The funding would be used to convert three streets, General Hudnell Dr., General McMullen Dr., and Billy Mitchell Boulevard into a network of complete streets on the Port San Antonio campus. The street improvements will expand pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure and provide safety improvements to transit infrastructure for residents.

Amount of Request: $16,130,057

Texas Division of Emergency Management

Concepcion Creek – Phase 1

This project is an initiative by the City of San Antonio to mitigate the harms of a 100-year flood that would affect 1,400 properties and over 2,000 structures. It will prevent future loss of life and property in the event of a flood.

Amount of Request: $10,000,000

VIA Metropolitan Transit Authority

VIA Second Maintenance and Operations Facility Planning

The funding would be used to cover costs associated with the public involvement, planning, engineering, and environmental studies leading to land acquisition for the Second Maintenance and Operations Facility.

Amount of Request: $4,161,065

San Antonio Water System

Generators for Pump Stations - San Antonio, TX

Following the 2021 freeze in Texas, SAWS initiated a multimillion-dollar project to ensure water pumping stations remain operable during extreme weather events and electricity outages. The funding would be used to install generators and pumping stations across San Antonio.

Amount of Request: $2,000,000

Research & Innovation

University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio

Medicinal Chemistry Infrastructure for Hepatic Steatosis Therapeutic Development

The funding would be used to acquire laboratory equipment and instrumentation for the Center for Innovation Drug Discovery – where new chemical synthetic techniques will be generated to discover novel treatments for hepatic steatosis.

Amount of Request: $1,945,000

Original source can be found here.