On the record is brought to you by Steve and Adele Dufilho.

San Antonio is a fast growing, fast moving city with something new happening every day.

That's why each week we go on the record with Randy Beamer and the newsmakers who are driving this change.

Then we gather at the reporters roundtable to talk about the latest news stories with the journalist behind those stories.

Join us now as we go on the record with Randy Beamer.

Hi, everybody, and thank you for watching on the record this week on Randy Beamer.

And with early voting set to start Monday, there is a brand new poll out from UT San Antonio Center for Public Opinion Research about support for a new Spurs arena.

New revamped the rodeo and stock show district on the east side and project more and Marvel overall.

And here to explain all that is the director of that polling center at UT San Antonio, Doctor Brian Gervais, thank you very much for coming in or talking about, first of all, what does this poll say?

In terms of whether you think this, you know, prop and prop will pass.

What we see limited support for prop B at this point in time?

About 40% of voters say that they plan to vote for property.

That's the arena.

Prop arena.

Correct.

And 46% say that they planned to vote against it, and the remainder are unsure at this point.

So a plurality of voters are, you know, at this point in time, are not supportive of of prop.

B, and how different is that from the prop eight support the new stock show and rodeo year round district on the east side.

The numbers are two different.

44% say they plan to vote for prop A, 41% oppose remainder or unsure.

And those numbers are very similar to support for Project Marvel.

Overall, when we ask voters, do they think, the city should move forward with Project Marvel about, 45, 46% of voters say they think the city should and, about 40%, think the city should not.

And so this hasn't really changed from your earlier polls on this.

Tell us about how how that happened.

The numbers look pretty similar to what we saw in February and April.

Of course, in those polls, we were asking people about the principle of it, not showing them the actual ballot wording.

But the fact that we are seeing, numbers very similar in this October poll, that we saw in our earlier spring polls, I think tells us that this is a real attitude.

There's real resistance, for any public funding, to be used for the Spurs arena at this point in time and the numbers, but for and towards Project Marvel in general are pretty similar.

We've seen it change a little bit.

You know, it dips a little bit below 40%, been a little bit above 40%, but pretty consistent overall.

And this people might wonder, okay, well how about the turnout?

And how about those who were strongly motivated to get out and vote one way or the other?

Does that change when you broke that down?

Yeah.

We don't see, you know, a real difference here.

All that much based on likelihood of voting.

Our data is weighted on likelihood of voting.

Right?

So, basically, people who say that they're likely to turnout count for more in our data.

And so, you know, what we're really seeing here are numbers based on folks that say they're probably they're very likely to turn out and actually vote on on Election Day or during, early voting.

How did you get the sample?

So, the way we get the sample is that we have a voter file, and we've got a list of everyone's vote history, among registered voters.

And, and Bexar County voting.

History, meaning whether they.

How they.

Yeah, it's not how people vote, but whether or not they actually voted to cast a ballot or not.

And so we're able to look at elections like this these off year November elections, over time, go back through history and you can see how different people voted in these types of elections and ensure that our sample looks like those prior electorates.

So we're not creating a sample that looks like a November 24th election, like a presidential election or even an April 25th election, which would, you know, be the municipal elections.

We had the in San Antonio.

It's a very particular type of electorate that shows up for these types of elections.

And so our sample is meant to look like those types of things.

And what about the timing people might have thought, okay, it's going to go up as the Spurs maybe and other supporters have increased their publicity campaign.

What are the timing?

When did you take this survey and did you expect it to be higher because of that?

Yeah.

So, you know, this this, survey was in the field between October 1st and October 3rd, and it's really just have some of the campaign efforts were really getting underway.

And so that's an important caveat.

You know, things like ballot propositions are very fluid.

Support for that.

They can change rapidly.

New endorsements come out, new information.

There's more and more mobilization efforts.

So these numbers certainly aren't final.

Right.

Or we wouldn't expect them to be final.

Sentiments can shift, but at least by early October, just as this campaign was getting going, you know, this is where support stood now, it's still an uphill battle because at this point in time, voters have to have been registered, you know, you know, 30 days prior.

And so you're really relying on people that are already registered, have the registration up to date.

And, you know, have this date circle down there on their calendar here.

You know, if you're hoping to bring in new voters here who typically don't vote, having updated their registration, it's a little bit too late.

All right.

Well, thank you very much, doctor Brian Gervais, who is the director of UT San Antonio Center for Public Opinion Research.

Appreciate it.

Thanks for having me.

Now here to talk about exactly what is on the ballot, maybe what isn't, what you might have heard about props.

A and B is Bexar County Judge Peter Sacchi.

Thank you very much for coming in.

Thank you Randy.

Now you voted and now we're out and talking about whether you are for or against this, because technically you can't get into that.

Correct.

But you wanted this on the ballot.

Why the opportunity that the county venue tax election brings to this community is being framed in referendum proposition A, referendum, proposition B and so what's important to recognize from the county perspective at this election in my opinion, is about the revitalization of the east side and of the downtown through economic development, through the use of a county venue tax, which is prescribed by law.

And that's what you want to talk about.

Here is what you can and can't use that for, because there's a lot of information, misinformation out there about what the what that money could be used for.

Instead, say.

The state law, which is what governs the county, not the city in essence, is it requires the county to expand its county venue tax the hotel occupancy tax, the rental car tax, the tourist tax to venues and those things attached to venues.

And it must be tourist economic development related.

That's the reason why I believe in some discussions.

Sure, the county venue tax has been used to create the Tobin Center.

It was to provide an extension to the Riverwalk, to the mission trails, to sport venues that were all venues tied to tourist development.

It cannot, and I understand the community want affordable housing, more sidewalks, more streets, more police officers.

I totally get it.

But this county venue tax has to be to venue and it has to be tourist related.

And prop B, the arena downtown, we call it the Spurs arena.

Vote, is one thing, but also very important.

And that prop A, is you say the beginning of what you hope to happen on the East side.

That's why I started this county venue tax election is about the revitalization of the east side, which is what are required before we move forward.

You had pushed off the vote, correct.

The Spurs wanted in May, because you wanted more details.

And then fleshing out what did you what have you fleshed out about what could happen in addition to what this money would go for in the East Side?

The fact that the San Antonio Rodeo, which has the frost, the Fremont and the Coliseum grounds for one month.

February Spurs leave town.

Have an opportunity now to go to year round plan.

They have given the county a business plan.

They make over $375 million in one month February.

They have projected, with the use of those facilities year round, they can double that money.

They've also said that the Spurs and the rodeo basically have outgrown each other.

The Spurs do not want to leave for that extended period of time, and the rodeo wants to expand.

They are rodeo western industry, and so what the county venue tax allows is to be a foundational piece to the east side.

I have further plans, and I hope that we could have an engagement of the Willow Springs Golf Course so that we can turn that into an economic generating situation.

Can we put a hotel there?

Can we make it a J.W.

Marriott TPC golf course?

Utilizing the golf course can be an ideal country where families and children come and stay.

We know that the rodeo has a program where people come and stay for extended periods of time, and so we have an opportunity to provide for growth in our community.

And that's the reason why I believe this, this election is so important to this community.

What are the misconceptions you think people have?

From what you've heard.

That we can use our county venue tax for those things that the public wants.

And I agree with the public.

I agree we need more affordable housing.

I agree we need more protection of our community.

Sidewalk.

We need more drainage and flood control.

But the county is all in in regards to public safety, public health, economic development.

But for this particular election and the use of the hotel tax and the rental car tax, the tourist tax zero impact on homeowners and renters, no homeowner property tax.

Oh, by the way, Randy, that was the template for the new baseball stadium.

We're not using homeowner property tax zero impact.

And so we have another opportunity to create an economic generation and envision the East side with the prospect, which I cannot allow to become the next Astrodome.

We have an opportunity to have a opportunity to reformat the county facilities.

Can't it be a pearl like facility, Randy, where we change it from asphalt, concrete and barns with dirt floors to multi-use venues that will allow restaurants, small businesses.

Oh, by the way, I believe that this referendum allows for tremendous opportunity for jobs and contract opportunities, and that's one thing the county has done in the past, is to insist that whatever opportunities are created with this referendum election is that we must take care of our small businesses, our contract companies, construction companies, our local businesses.

And so I see this as growth.

Do you think this is informed by what didn't happen before on the East side in the Frost Bank center and the construction of that, where people had the impression this is going to change everything and and it didn't.

I acknowledge the grievance.

I acknowledge that the fact that the East side did not was not kept the promises by the city, county and the Spurs 20 years ago.

And that's the reason why, as county judge, I insisted that the East side be taken care of before we could take care of the Spurs.

That's the reason why referendum proposition A is, first, let's take care of the revitalization east side and whatever we have left, we can give to the Spurs so that we keep the Spurs in town.

The Spurs are a valuable corporate citizen.

They're a major employer and more importantly, they give back through much philanthropy.

People also, might not realize that the Spurs only lease that land and their lease comes up.

What is it.

3020 30.

To 2032 stock.

So in rodeo, their lease comes up in 2028.

Correct.

And so technically, both of those could have decided that they were going to leave.

They both could leave completely.

And I understand the Stockton on Rodeo, Cody Davenport told us that they looked at what they could do, but that's the best thing is to stay there.

Oh, they're committed to the East Side.

And the other thing about the Santos Rodeo is that they're invested in the East Side.

They are an East Side organization.

They're invested in the community.

They're going to provide for FFA programs for the East Side community, for those kids.

They're doing that just now.

I was at one of their events where they did an animal and, activity there on the East Side grounds, inviting the local community.

They have promised to make that fulfill that commitment to make sure that they're a good corporate citizen for the East Side.

All right.

Well, thank you very much for coming in, Judge Peter and Bexar County Judge Peter Sakai, thanks.

Thank you.

Randy.

Right now, state education officials are once again beginning the process of changing, revising state social studies curriculum and standards for children across the state of Texas.

Now, this was last done in 2012 was supposed to be done a number of years ago.

It's a very controversial topic, and it is once again this year here to join us and talk about that is Marissa Perez Diaz, who was district three State Board of Education member.

Thank you very much for coming in.

I think you have you been Randi.

Now, this again since 2012?

This hasn't been done.

I think the last time we talked to you, or at least one of the times we talked to you, was that it was supposed to happen.

Very controversial.

We are starting the process now with content advisers getting together, chosen by, State Board of Education members and other.

So what is supposed to happen right now in terms of picking social studies curriculum?

Yeah.

So the way that it works, beginning with our, content advisers, the C word of education is made up of 15 members.

We are supposed to partner to collaboratively, nominate these individuals to serve.

And so of the 40 of the 15 of us, 14 of us have a say in who can serve on this panel, we identify seven people to serve on the panel.

And then the Texas Higher Education Coordinate Coordinating Board.

Excuse me.

Adds an additional two advisors from the higher ed perspective.

And so these individuals will now be convened, and they will be working together for the next 6 to 8 weeks to look at our standards as they stand, make recommendations about what is, pedagogically appropriate, what is developmentally appropriate, what's important for students to learn, and, and really just talking through recommendations that they want to bring to the state Board of Education in, in January.

This was supposed to happen a few years ago.

And what happened then?

So unfortunately, we went through the entire process.

We got through our, through recommendations, through public comment and testimonies.

And at the 11th hour, it was, essentially a political decision to hold off on the final, on the final decision to move forward with our standards as they stood at second reading, and, and it's just been kind of in this holding pattern for some time.

And, and we find ourselves now starting from scratch with an entirely new board.

What are the most controversial topics that social studies, curriculum has?

And then with new board members, it's gotten even more controversial.

I think that right now, what we talk about, and it's sort of what you see in Texas is a microcosm of what's happening at the national level.

We want to see inclusivity, in, in our history, accurate portrayals of what's happened in our country so that we can learn from the past to not repeat it, to make things better, but so that our students understand how to critically think through really contentious topics.

There's a very controversial content advisor that's been chosen.

That's really a flashpoint in this.

It's David Barton and chosen by some of the members from North Texas.

Tell us about him.

Yeah.

Well, I'll tell you, that's a great question.

I'll tell you what.

He's not so randy.

He is not an educator.

He is not a historian.

He doesn't have credentials that qualify him to be an expert in this, in this field.

In fact, he published a book in 2012 that was pulled out of shelves from a Christian publishing company because he was factually inaccurate, and telling the story of, of Jefferson and what his founding contributions were to this country.

He's a David Barton, Christian nationalist, very controversial.

What kind of impact do these content advisors have?

Because their recommendations then go to a home state board of education.

Texas Education Agency.

It's a very complicated process.

Yeah, absolutely.

So these content advisors are incredibly influential in this in how we develop the standards.

So they will work together and bring recommendations to the state Board of Education from an expert lens.

Right.

And so, you have PhDs, historians, anthropologists, individuals who have who have committed their life's work to understanding, American and world history, Texas history.

They're they're bringing this content to us, and then they will work.

So they they provide recommendations to the state Board of Education, and then their recommendations are also looked at by our, we have additional committees that are looking at different subject matter within social studies, at different grade levels.

And so now they're looking at what they're working on, stacking that against, checking that up against what the content advisors have provided in terms of recommendations.

So their recommendations will influence how our smaller committees are work.

And again, what this does is, is it shows how our kids will be taught about things like what happened at the Alamo.

Again, that's a microcosm of the controversies there, whether slavery, how much slavery at that time, had to play in the Texas Revolution and things like that.

Are you concerned that there are things that are going to be left out?

As I understand it, though, Texas in US history is going to be emphasized much more than world and and regional history that has been in the past.

Is that right?

I will say from from my perspective and a few of my colleagues on the board, that's a very unfortunate move on our part.

I would say, there is there is an Uber focus on Texas history and U.S.

history, but we can't understand Texas in U.S.

history without understanding our global, role.

And, and to your point, that is sort of being diminished as well.

And that happened against the advice of, again, practitioners, historians, people who are studied in this work who really just want the best for our students.

All right.

Well, thank you very much.

I know this is going to be in the headlines a lot.

You're going to be focused on this.

Thank you very much for coming in.

Marisa Perez, the State Board of Education, district three.

Thanks.

And of course.

On reporters roundtable this week, the Alamo.

If you haven't been down to Alamo Plaza, there are so many changes right now as we're working on that massive renovation.

But there have been a couple of stories in the news recently that are focused on a couple of other items on the Alamo, and here to tell us everything there is to know about the Alamo is Scott Huddleston, who knows everything there is to know, writes for the San Antonio Express-News.

Thank you very much for coming.

Thank you.

Randy.

First of all, this latest story that you wrote this week about a controversial, I guess, post that went out from the Alamo and then was deleted.

Tell us about that.

So the Alamo, put out on its Facebook and and ex pages, posts related to Columbus Day, but also, indigenous peoples.

The gallery that it's planning and its visitor center and museum that will open in 2027.

And commissioner, land commissioner Don Buckingham, who oversees the land office, which is the custodian of the Alamo, objected to that post, after, you know, somebody complained about that, I guess kind of, of right wing, Michael Sullivan that I kind of, I don't want to say notorious, but a well known right wing influencer brought it to her attention.

She, I guess, is launched an investigation.

Yeah.

Apparently she she directed somebody to take it down.

I don't know that for a fact, but, in any case, that particular post was removed, and it was just referring to indigenous peoples, a gallery that would, delve into the indigenous culture at the roots of the site of the Alamo, of what it first served as the Mission San Antonio de Valero became before it became the the famous battle site.

And it was basically built by so many different groups of Native Americans from this area, directed by, I guess, the Spanish, at the time.

But it wouldn't have happened without it.

And so the post itself, if you look at it, it's kind of innocuous.

The headline of, oh, it was a woke post, Happy Indigenous People's Day is kind of misleading, I guess.

Yeah.

The post didn't say Happy Indigenous Peoples Day, but it did refer to what's planned at the Alamo.

And, and the commissioner did call it woke.

But it's ironic because her team has been involved in the Alamo project, which will include, these galleries about indigenous culture, the mission era and the civil rights movements in Texas.

So, you know, I think it was just an issue of that particular post and hopefully not something that will affect, the Alamo project or the way that it's marketed.

In the bigger picture, though, it shows, again, the tension between those who have different political views on how the Alamo should be portrayed.

And and we're coming up on a time when the education center is going to open next spring, and the visitor center the year after that.

Do you think this, shows that there will see public fights over what how it should be represented because there was backlash to them taking this post off?

There certainly have been a lot of passionate, arguments, that have been occurring under the radar because the museum committees are meeting privately.

And they're those members are all under a non-disclosure agreements.

They don't talk about specific issues that are discussed.

And so it'll be interesting to see, you know, how public did the debates become over time as the site gets nearer to completion and actually opens?

And then we'll see, you know, how how it's received.

And speaking of education, that's the other story you wrote recently about The Alamo is how they are trying to get schoolkids involved in raising money.

I guess Texas Education Commissioner, Mike Morath was at the Alamo to promote the History Heroes program, which is a statewide appeal to, public and private school children throughout the state to help raise funds for the Alamo.

But they'll be giving out a whole bunch of prizes.

And, you know, potential, you know, visits to the site, that kind of thing.

So, you know, it's a way of engaging schoolchildren and letting them be part of the project while also, you know, maybe raising a little bit more money.

But, yeah.

How does it work there?

So it's competitive.

More kids raise more money.

They can get.

Yeah.

Things or prizes.

Anything from little wristbands to, you know, I don't know, all kinds of little prizes and stuff.

Up to you know, a school visit for up to, I think 250 children.

Did this surprise you at all?

It seems it seems unusual and it is unusual.

But the Alamo has been diversifying all of its educational offerings and is, in fact, going to open an education center, next March.

And it's providing more programing for teachers, including an all expense paid during the summer trip to Mexico City.

And there are other things that people might not realize again.

And I've gone down there periodically throughout the last few months and years, but everything is changing down there.

The cenotaph, you see, that's going to be rededicated, rededicated November 11th on Veterans Day.

It's my understanding that it will be all finished out and, landscaped and lighting added and, you know, all cleaned up and repaired.

So, that's going to be a really important part of the project because as you know, the cenotaph was a big issue of debate a few years ago, and that's been settled that it will stay in place.

All right.

Well, thank you very much and more to report on for the man who knows you better everything there is to know about the Alamo.

And by the way, you were great at the Gridiron Show this year, Scott Huddleston.

Man of many talents, express in using.

Check it out, online and in an actual newspaper.

Thanks.

And thank you for joining us for this edition of On the Record.

You can watch this show again.

You can watch any previous shows.

You can download them as podcast.

Just go to KLRN.org.

I'm Randy Beamer and we'll see you next time.

On the record is brought to you by Steve and Adele Dufilho.