SAN ANTONIO — A week that started with Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones floating the proposal of using Ready to Work dollars to address the city’s $157.7 million budget deficit ended with another idea: asking community leaders to help fund certain San Antonio entities, in the process freeing up vital dollars.
In a letter sent Friday “to the business, foundation and philanthropic community,” according to her staff, Mayor Jones asked recipients to “consider a three-year funding commitment” that at least matches the 2026 budget allocation for 15 groups. Among them: the San Antonio Botanical Garden, Book Fest, Parks Foundation and Siclovia.
The 15 groups received a combined $6.52 million in 2026 budget allocations, with the San Antonio Education Partnership Scholarship & Outreach Program nabbing the biggest slice of that financial pie (nearly $2.48 million). The San Antonio Botanical Garden was the other entity on the list to receive more than $1 million this year through the General Fund, which also covers services like the police and fire departments, street upkeep, and parks…