San Antonio Report
by Andrea Drusch
Mayor Ron Nirenberg issued new assignments for City Council committees Tuesday after two members received votes of no-confidence from their colleagues this month.
The mayor gets to choose who serves on which of the city’s committees, as well as which members of the council represent the city on various other boards.
The reshuffled list removes Councilman Clayton Perry (D10), who is taking a leave of absence after his involvement in an alleged hit-and-run car accident on Nov. 6.
The changes also separate Councilman Mario Bravo (D1) and Councilwoman Ana Sandoval (D7) after an independent investigator determined Bravo berated Sandoval ahead of a budget vote in September. The two council members previously served on three of the same committees.
The changes go into effect Nov. 15 and will last through the end of the 2021-2023 council term. San Antonio is scheduled to hold its next municipal election on May 6, 2023.
“Considering recent events, the rosters of the committees have been changed in order to continue the business of the city,” Nirenberg wrote in a letter to city leaders Tuesday.
“We have much to accomplish through the end of this term, and I look forward to working with each of you to realize our mutual goals to benefit the City of San Antonio and its residents,” he wrote.
City Council will choose a temporary replacement to represent District 10 in the coming weeks. Nirenberg’s spokesman, Bruce Davidson, said the mayor will determine later whether that replacement will serve on any committees.
The future of Bravo’s assignments was unclear after he was censured last week. Nirenberg had temporarily removed him from all assignments during the investigation.
As of Nov. 15, Bravo will serve on the Audit and Accountability, Economic and Workforce Development Committee, and Public Safety Committee. He also will represent the city on the Alamo Area Council of Governments board of directors, along with Councilman Manny Pelaez (D8) and Councilwoman Adriana Rocha Garcia (D4).
Bravo and Perry both previously represented the city on the Alamo Area Metropolitan Planning Organization’s Transportation Policy Board, along with Sandoval and Councilwoman Melissa Cabello Havrda (D6). Bravo and Perry will be replaced on that panel by Councilwoman Teri Castillo (D5) and Councilman John Courage (D9).
Sandoval will continue to chair the Community Health, Environment and Culture Committee and serve on the Municipal Utilities Committee and the Transportation and Mobility Committee.
She will no longer serve on the Public Safety Committee, and was added to the Intergovernmental Relations Committee and the Planning and Community Development Committee.
A full list of the new assignments, as well as Nirenberg’s letter to city leaders, can be found here.