San Antonio Government – San Antonio Economic Development Department | Blanco Rd CBD Store

100 W Houston St #1900, San Antonio, TX 78205, United States

The Department of Economic Development’s goal is to promote sustainable development for the continued prosperity of our society through cooperation and creativity.

San Antonio is the seventh largest city in the United States and is witnessing strong economic growth in 21st-century sectors such as bioscience and healthcare, aerospace, IT and cybersecurity, and green technologies. The economy of San Antonio has remained stable and healthy through the positive recruitment of new businesses and the development of established businesses. The City has concentrated on developing new job opportunities in industries of the 21st century, maintaining a high quality of life and promoting local and international business growth.

Alejandra Lopez is the Head of the San Antonio City Department of Economic Development. Prior to being appointed as the director, Ms. Lopez worked as the department’s deputy director where she led a team of professionals who continually develop and introduce policies and resources to encourage job development and private investment by hiring, attracting and growing companies to San Antonio. She also supervises the City’s Office of International relations, providing strategic guidance in the execution of diplomatic functions and cultivating partnerships with sister and friendship cities around the world.

To better serve the business community, the City of San Antonio has partnered with the San Antonio Economic Development Foundation (SAEDF) to create a collaborative public-private partnership to attract San Antonio businesses, maintain and grow existing local businesses and foster economic growth in the region. As a venue for business growth, the SAEDF manages a significant component of San Antonio marketing. The San Antonio Site Locator (SASL) is one of the instruments available for prospecting businesses.

The City also collaborates with numerous community partners such as San Antonio Water System (SAWS), CPS Resources, Alamo Colleges, and Workforce Solution Alamo to provide companies with additional benefits by waiving utility set-up fees and offering training programs to meet the workforce needs of a company. 

The City of San Antonio is committed to providing high-quality jobs. San Antonio recognizes that the quality of its job prospects derives from the quality of education and access. The San Antonio MSA is home to 14 universities and colleges offering degrees in all major fields of study and educating over 120,000 students.

Currently, the City of San Antonio operates seven workforce development contracts through the Department of Economic Development.These agencies are Chrysalis Ministries, Dress for Success, SA Youth, Project Quest, Alamo Community College’s Seguir Adelante Program, Each One Teach One and Goodwill. The cumulative value of those contracts reflects a City commitment of just over $2 million in workforce education. 

With site selection, growth, licensing and expansion needs, the Industry Growth Division assists start-up projects, existing companies and those relocating to San Antonio. The business-friendly climate of San Antonio makes the town the best place to grow and prosper in Texas. San Antonio is consistently ranked as one of the highest performing U.S. City for Jobs in the Milken Institute. The Division of Industry focuses on rising quality employment and domestic and foreign investment. Healthcare and Bioscience, Aerospace, Manufactoring, Information Technology or Cybersecurity and New Energy Economy are the city’s targeted clusters of industries.

You can contact the Department for all media enquiries and interview requests at 

Telephone number: 210.207.8080.