A new coalition, the Central Texas Alliance, has been formed to address regional issues in the Austin-San Antonio corridor. The alliance is a coalition of civic, business, economic development, academic, and community leaders founded to support the 13-county mega region.
Regional Challenges
The goal of the Alliance is to convene leaders to form one voice on behalf of the region, which is made up of 120 municipalities. The alliance will focus on seven issue areas, including transportation, water resources, housing, workforce development, energy resilience, healthcare, and land stewardship and planning.
The Austin-San Antonio corridor has a population of 5.3 million and is expected to add 3 million more residents by 2050, according to census data. This growth will put demands on housing, energy, and water resources, mobility infrastructure, and the region’s workforce.
Leadership and Structure
The Alliance is led by co-chairpersons Gary Farmer and Jenna Saucedo-Herrera. The organization has a newly-appointed CEO, A.J. Rodriguez, who is currently transitioning from his role as executive vice president for the public policy and advocacy organization, Texas 2036.
The Alliance is not a chamber of commerce or an economic development entity, but will work with those organizations throughout the region. The group will collect data and convene leaders to advocate for the region’s needs at the state and federal level.
Original reporting: San Antonio Report — read the source article.
