San Antonio councilmembers have been quietly sitting pretty at the Alamodome. Records obtained by KSAT show the City of San Antonio offered them complimentary seats to at least 40 concerts and sporting events at the venue since 2023. Each council office was offered two box seats per event, plus parking passes, and could ask for more tickets on top of that. The arrangement is now raising fresh questions about transparency, whether the perks should have been reported on conflict-disclosure forms and what, exactly, the public gets out of the deal.
What KSAT's records show
According to documents reviewed by KSAT Investigates, the city made two complimentary box seats and parking available to each councilmember and a guest for at least 40 Alamodome concerts and sporting events starting in 2023. The list reads like a highlight reel, including shows from Shakira, Billy Joel, Sting, Guns ’N’ Roses, Karol G and P!nk. The records state that council offices could request extra tickets and that officials are expected to attend if they accept them. KSAT also reviewed conflict-disclosure filings and found that none of the officials listed the Alamodome tickets during that period.
Who accepted the seats
The paperwork shows some officials took advantage of the perks far more than others. Former District 6 Councilwoman Melissa Cabello Havrda accepted tickets to 23 Alamodome events, the highest tally of any councilmember. Former Mayor Ron Nirenberg accepted tickets to 22 events. Councilmembers Phyllis Viagran and Teri Castillo accepted tickets to 13 and 11 events, respectively, while Sukh Kaur also accepted tickets to 11 events and Jalen McKee‑Rodriguez accepted tickets to three. Several former members, including Adriana Rocha Garcia, Manny Pelaez and John Courage, also requested or accepted multiple tickets.
Final Four purchase drew earlier scrutiny
The scrutiny over tickets at the city-owned venue is not entirely new. In April, the city's Convention & Sports Facilities department spent $20,000 on 20 VIP Final Four tickets for councilmembers and their guests, a purchase that triggered questions about using public funds for premium seats. As reported by the San Antonio Report, the tickets were paid for with Alamodome revenue and sparked public records requests earlier this year.
City response
In a statement to KSAT, city spokesperson Brian Chasnoff said the tickets given to the mayor and council are part of a "complimentary allotment" assigned to the venue and therefore "are not considered gifts" that must be disclosed under the city's ethics code. Chasnoff added that the Alamodome is a city-owned facility and that councilmembers sometimes attend events there in their role as stewards of that asset. The statement did not say whether the city is considering any changes in how those seats are tracked or disclosed in the future.
Transparency questions linger
Policy analysts say the setup raises straightforward public-reporting questions. If officials accept high-value seats from a city-owned venue, they argue the public should be able to see whether those arrangements provide a clear benefit to constituents. Supporters of the current practice counter that councilmembers can use the tickets to invite residents, promote local teams and showcase city facilities. Critics respond that formal disclosure rules would at least reduce the appearance of special treatment for elected officials.
What to watch
For now, the records and the city's response have pushed the issue into the open and could lead to calls for clearer tracking or disclosure of complimentary tickets in the future. KSAT Investigates has the documents, and the ticket perks are likely to surface again at city hall and in upcoming council ethics reviews.
