This week’s guest is Andrés Andujar, CEO of the Hemisfair Park Area Redevelopment Corporation, commonly known as HPARC, a position he has held since 2011. Andujar, an architectural engineer, is the driving force behind the community vision for the redevelopment of the nearly 100-acre downtown space that was home 55 years ago to HemisFair ‘68, the city’s world’s fair staged over six months in 1968.

The park was underutilized for decades until the City of San Antonio under Mayor Julian Castro created HPARC. The district’s incremental development was guided by a Vision and Guiding Principles developed during Mayor Phil Hardberger’s term, and used by Mayor Julín Castro when he came into office in 2009 and declared the next 10 years the Decade of Downtown.

Development of the park has been slow and incremental, but a major milestone will be realized on Sept. 30 when Andujar, Mayor Ron Nirenberger and City Manager Erik Walsh and others cut the ribbon on the long-awaited Civic Park, which will open by hosting the 40th annual Jazz’SAlive festival.