Smart Cities Roadmap Launch Celebrates San Antonio Digital Innovation

Published on June 27, 2023

San Antonio (June 27, 2023) - Today, the Smart Cities Team at the Office of Innovation released the Smart Cities Roadmap and Smarter Together Initiative. The Smart Cities Roadmap provides a community-driven vision for the use of technology to improve public services and resident quality of life. The Roadmap positions San Antonio to be competitive for federal grant funding including the Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act, U.S. Chips & Science Act, and the Inflation Reduction Act.

The Smart Cities Roadmap represents nearly a year's worth of stakeholder engagement to inform a community-driven vision for San Antonio’s future as a leader in digital innovation. Key features of the roadmap include:

• Refreshed Mission & Vision for the Smart Cities team
• Community driven “Guiding Principles” for San Antonio as a Smart City
• 3 Strategies for Organizational Impact within the City of San Antonio: Business Operations, Data, Resident Engagement
• Introduction to the Smarter Together Testbed focusing on 5 Challenge Areas defined by residents (Access to Transportation, Access to Public Information, Public Safety, Safe Infrastructure, Resilience and Environmental Quality)

"Cities around the world are leveraging technology to better manage assets and support future growth, economic opportunity, and mobility,” said Mayor Ron Nirenberg. “The Smart Cities Team’s Smarter Together Initiative lays out a people-centered vision and strategy that is directly responsive to the needs of San Antonio residents. The focus on innovation, proactive services, and utilization of best practices will drive improvements in our administrative, financial, and information systems.” 

In May, the Smart Cities team launched the Smarter Together Initiative nationally to drive investment and resources to San Antonio. As the seventh largest and one of the fastest-growing cities in the country, San Antonio is well positioned to take advantage of today’s opportunities to build a better tomorrow for our community.

"The San Antonio Smart Cities Roadmap and Smarter Together Initiative embodies the Core Values we instill within the organization: Teamwork, Integrity, Innovation, and Professionalism,” said City Manager Erik Walsh. “This initiative operationalizes San Antonio’s Smart Cities approach and will improve the way we deliver services to our residents. By focusing on collaboration, resident engagement, and supporting our city departments, the Smart Cities team’s intentional plan will help us deliver on the City’s vision of prosperity for our diverse, vibrant, and historic community.”

To celebrate the launch, the City of San Antonio’s Office of Innovation is hosting a Community Celebration on June 27, 2023, from 5:30pm to 8:30pm to highlight San Antonio’s rich history, dynamic present, and promising future. This event is free and open to the public, bringing together residents, community leaders, and subject matter experts to discuss how the City will use the Smart Cities Roadmap to guide research and test new technology to improve the quality of life in San Antonio.

The festivities will be held at the Dry Goods Building at 107 N. Flores St., San Antonio, TX 78205. Parking downtown is free at city-operated parking garages, parking lots and parking meters from 5 p.m. to 2 a.m. A complete schedule of events is available at https://SmartCitiesRoadmapLaunch.eventbrite.com . 

Attendees are encouraged to RSVP in advance. 

To view the roadmap and stay up to date with Smarter Together Initiative, visit www.SmarterTogetherSA.com.