Tech event arena, co-working space envisioned for Port San Antonio

February 2019 renderings show “very conceptual” ideas for an Innovation Center at Port San Antonio, according to CEO Jim Perschbach. February 2019 renderings show “very conceptual” ideas for an Innovation Center at Port San Antonio, according to CEO Jim Perschbach. Photo: Illustration Courtesy Of Port San Antonio Photo: Illustration Courtesy Of Port San Antonio Image 1 of / 35 Caption Close Tech event arena, co-working space envisioned for Port San Antonio 1 / 35 Back to Gallery

Gamers soon could duke it out in video-game tournaments splashed across huge screens at Port San Antonio, while enthusiasts race drones and maneuver robots through obstacle courses.

Those are a few of the ideas Jim Perschbach, the port’s president and CEO, has pitched for the proposed Innovation Center.

The center — which needs backers to become a reality — would be located in existing buildings at the 1,900-acre former Kelly AFB, potentially serving as a hub for training programs in virtual reality and cybersecurity.

The facility also would house local inventor David Monroe’s San Antonio Museum of Science and Technology, an existing institution at the port with exhibits and artifacts chronicling the Alamo City’s high-tech history.

Other uses could include co-working, classroom and conference space and a food court.

While Port San Antonio on the Southwest Side is best known for the aerospace companies and manufacturers working there, Perschbach is pushing to expand its place in San Antonio’s high-tech scene.

On ExpressNews.com: San Antonio — the forgotten incubator of modern computing

Renderings show early, “very conceptual” ideas for the center, Perschbach said. Port executives are talking to companies, government agencies, educational institutions and other groups — potential partners in the center’s development — about how the space could be used.

There’s no fixed timeline yet, he said, but port officials hope it will come together “fairly quickly.”

A gaming arena could attract young technology enthusiasts to the port, District 4 Councilman Rey Saldaña said. It also could present a big opportunity for San Antonio and the South Side to snag a slice of the growing esports, or competitive gaming, industry, he said.

Market research group Newzoo predicts the global esports market will hit $1.1 billion in revenue this year, reaching an audience of more than 453 million.

“Esports’ impressive audience and viewership growth is a direct result of an engaging viewership experience untethered to traditional media,” Newzoo CEO Peter Warman said in a statement. “Plenty of leagues and tournaments now have huge audiences, so companies are positioning themselves to directly monetize these esports enthusiasts.”

It’s “exploding” in popularity, said Chris Saenz, founder of the Alamo City eLeagues group. Young players with gaming skills even can get college scholarships, he said.

Saenz also is an assistant manager at PLAYlive Nation’s Culebra Commons location, a gaming lounge that holds competitions, parties and other events. Several other venues in San Antonio, such as LFG Cybercafe and Otaku Café, host similar events.

A local tech arena “definitely has potential,” Saenz said.

San Antonio gamer Ansley Partosa said an arena for competitive gaming sounds appealing.

“Having a big community hub would bring more people together,” Partosa said. “I think having the tech arena would also allow people who aren’t gamers to see that it’s not a anti-social hobby. It’s a community of people having fun together participating in a common interest.”

Ryan Potter, who organizes a Gamers San Antonio meet-up group, said patrons would want to know how much they’d have to pay to use the arena, if games would be provided and whether food and drinks would be available for sale, he added.

The Innovation Center is part of the plan Perschbach laid out last summer, when he assumed leadership of the port, for “a virtually and physically connected campus.”

He said older industries need to work with technology innovators and entrepreneurs, especially as the world becomes more connected, and the port is a place where that’s happening.

The new Project Tech building is designed to draw more cybersecurity and information-technology jobs to the port. Lockheed Martin was the first tenant to move in, and cybersecurity company LGS Innovations recently announced plans to set up a cyber hub at the facility.

The Innovation Center would serve as a place where students could learn about technology and craft their own products, companies and government agencies could showcase employment opportunities and startups could develop their products or services.

“We want it to be used by people all over the community,” Perschbach said. “We want it to spark the recognition, nationally and globally, that there’s a lot of really exciting stuff happening in San Antonio.”

madison.iszler@express- news.net