Axios San Antonio

May 19, 2025
☀️ It's a new week. Embrace the fresh start!
Today's weather: Windy and sunny with a high in the upper 90s.
💬 Situational awareness: To commemorate the 20-year mark of Hurricane Katrina this August, we're looking for people from New Orleans who settled in San Antonio after the storm and made an impact here.
- Hit reply to let us know who we should talk to.
Today's newsletter is 929 words — a 3.5-minute read.
1 big thing: Texas school funding woes
School districts in Texas are struggling with funding deficits and could face more shortfalls under a Trump administration plan to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education.
Why it matters: As the White House signals that less help could be coming, Texas public school districts are closing campuses while facing teacher shortages and falling school performance ratings.
Reality check: It's unclear precisely how the potential demise of the Education Department will affect federal funding to local school systems. The department is the primary source of federal money to local schools, but not the only one.
Zoom in: Northside ISD, San Antonio's largest school district, gets about 15% of its revenue from federal sources, per Census Bureau data. That's more than $219 million.
Between the lines: Nationally, federal funds now make up an average of about 14% of a public school system's budget, with more typically going to lower-income areas.
- That plays out in San Antonio. On the South Side, Harlandale, South San and Somerset ISDs bring in more federal revenue than local revenue.
- Alamo Heights ISD, a wealthy North Side district, receives just 6% of its revenue from federal funding, while Edgewood ISD on the city's near West Side gets 42%.
What they're saying: In Edgewood ISD, federal funds support afterschool instruction and professional development for educators, as well as a special education program and Head Start and Early Head Start programs, Myrna Martinez, Edgewood's superintendent of business operations, tells Axios in a statement.
- "Losing this support would have a profound impact not only on the district but also on the many families who depend on these early learning opportunities," Martinez says.
The other side: Trump's order to close the Education Department is a step toward fulfilling one of his campaign promises: removing federal oversight of states' public education systems.
2. 📈 We're growin', growin'

San Antonio continues to be a magnet for newcomers.
Why it matters: Signs of big growth in the Sun Belt continue, despite the climate risks associated with living here.
The latest: San Antonio ranked No. 4 nationwide for new residents gained from 2023 to 2024, per new U.S. Census Bureau data.
- We gained 23,945 new residents in that time period.
Flashback: While we're still topping the list, we fell from the No. 1 spot in the same data released last year.
The intrigue: From 2022 to 2023, San Antonio gained nearly 22,000 new residents — so while our numbers still rose, other major U.S. cities rebounded more strongly.
- New York City topped the list with more than 87,000 newcomers, followed by Houston with more than 43,000 and Los Angeles with over 31,000.
Zoom out: Meanwhile in Texas, Fort Worth surpassed Austin to become the 11th most populous U.S. city.
The big picture: San Antonio remains the seventh most populous U.S. city, with a population of 1.53 million in 2024, per the Census Bureau.
What we're watching: When the Alamo City will finally beat out Philadelphia (population 1.57 million) for the No. 6 most populous city spot.
The bottom line: Everywhere's still growing in Texas.
3. Inside the Loop
🏗️ A state appeals court rejected a request from the San Antonio Conservation Society to temporarily stop demolition at the Institute of Texan Cultures downtown, a historic site planned as the potential home of a new Spurs arena. (SA Business Journal 🔑)
🏘️ The city has dropped a plan that would have displaced people living in more than 150 South Side homes to move them from a floodplain. The move could have been San Antonio's largest use of eminent domain in recent history.
- Officials are instead looking at an underground drainage system. (SA Report)
🦪 St. Mary's University sent 100,000 shells leftover from Fiesta Oyster Bake to the Texas coast to help with oyster reef rehabilitation. (KSAT)
♿ The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department added motorized track wheelchairs to make state park trails more accessible. (TPR)
4. 🤑 Big names, cheap tickets
Live Nation's new summer concert promotion is coming, and the live music behemoth will offer $30 tickets to roughly 1,000 concerts.
Why it matters: The "$30 Ticket to Summer" launches Wednesday and includes shows from Nelly, Luke Bryan, Halsey, blink-182, Leon Bridges, Billy Idol, Kesha, Willie Nelson and more.
Flashback: Last summer, Live Nation celebrated 10 years of "Concert Week" with $25 tickets, but those deals only lasted one week.
- This new promotion will add more tickets throughout the summer, giving fans more flexibility.
Between the lines: Tickets purchased through the offer include all fees, according to Live Nation. Any taxes, which will differ between venues, will be added at checkout.
What's next: Beginning Wednesday, San Antonio concertgoers will be able to see participating shows by filtering for venues on livenation.com.
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5. 🍌 San Antonio sips: New money, new cocktails
👋 Megan here. I recently took an out-of-town friend to Best Quality Daughter, when they just so happened to have released a new cocktail menu.
State of sips: I've always loved the drink menu at this Pearl spot, but I had pretty much tried them all by this point (whoops). I was excited to taste something different.
Catch up quick: Best Quality Daughter is helmed by chef-owner Jennifer Hwa Dobbertin, a 2025 James Beard semifinalist.
What to drink: The New Money ($16) is made with cognac, rum, banana, miso sesame orgeat and lime. I loved the hint of umami from the miso and brightness from the lime.
- If you're hesitant about banana in a drink, let this cocktail change your mind.
What's next: Hwa Dobbertin plans on opening a cocktail bar at Pearl called Jue Let. I wonder if the new Best Quality Daughter drinks offer a preview of what's to come.
Thanks to our editors Astrid Galván and Bob Gee.
🍽️ Madalyn is happy that she was finally able to try Isidore over the weekend.
💚 Megan finally found the perfect jade ring after searching for years.
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