A man in his 20s is dead after he was struck by two vehicles on a West Side street early Tuesday morning, San Antonio police said.

The incident occurred around 12:30 a.m. in the 2800 block of Culebra Road, not far from North General McMullen Drive and Memorial High School.

According to police, the man was either on the side of the road or attempting to cross the street when he was hit by a gray pickup truck and then run over by a second vehicle. The man was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

The drivers of both vehicles did not stop to render aid. They have not yet been found.

The San Antonio Police Department, the San Antonio Fire Department and EMS all answered the call.

If located, the drivers could face a charge of failing to stop and render aid. The investigation is ongoing, police said.

San Antonio police are investigating a shooting that led to a vehicle crash on the city’s West Side early Tuesday morning.

The incident occurred around 3 a.m. at the intersection of Castroville Road and SW 21st Street, not far from Our Lady of the Lake University.

According to police, a female driver and two passengers crashed their vehicle into a utility pole after being chased by a dark colored sports car that was shooting at them.

Police said the suspects in the sports car fled following the crash. The female driver was taken by EMS to University Hospital, where she is listed in stable condition. The condition of the two passengers, a man and a woman, are not currently known.

SAPD did not give a motive for the shooting. So far, no arrests have been made. The investigation is ongoing, police said.

Editor’s note: This story was published through a partnership between KSAT and the San Antonio Business Journal.

American Airlines Group has slashed thousands of domestic flights, including 33 at San Antonio International Airport, and eliminated entirely a number of routes scheduled for March, with most of the changes targeted at its most popular U.S. hubs, the carrier confirmed.

While the cuts won’t be nearly as deep in the Alamo City as in several other markets, they come as local airport officials are working to expand air connectivity and capacity.

The reductions mark the latest example of the prolonged effects COVID-19 has inflicted upon the airline industry and highlight the fast-changing decisions unfolding for American (Nasdaq: AAL) and its competitors as the virus upends travel patterns, supply chains and labor markets. The new round of cuts also come roughly three months after American eliminated roughly 77,000 flights from its January and February schedules.

A Business Journals analysis of flight data provided by Cirium Inc. identified a slew of cuts to American’s schedule in March. The bulk of the changes were implemented during the week that commenced Jan. 10. Other major airlines posted adjustments during that span as well, with United Airlines Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq: UAL) cutting 373 flights and Delta Air Lines Inc. (NYSE: DAL) with 242 flights. None, however, came close to the 10,621 flights that American Airlines has dropped.

The cuts equated to approximately 6.7% of American’s scheduled flights for March, according to Cirium.

As of Jan. 10, American had 634 flights scheduled to or from San Antonio International, representing more than 93,000 seats. Those figures are down from 667 flights and 100,166 seats one week prior.

American Airlines spokesperson Brian Metham said the March adjustments were intended to better align the carrier’s resources with demand.

“Even with these schedule adjustments, American continues to offer the most departures in the month of March among the major U.S. carriers,” Metham said.

American is the second-largest airline servicing San Antonio International. Its San Antonio cuts will affect flights to or from Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, Charlotte Douglas International Airport, Chicago O’Hare International Airport and Los Angeles International Airport.

Despite the reduction in service, American has 146 more flights scheduled for March 2022 than it offered the same month a year ago.

Other cities are taking a bigger hit from American’s adjustments. Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, for example, the largest hub for the airline’s domestic operations, saw its March schedule cut by more than 1,500 flights from Jan. 3 to Jan. 10.

Click here to read the full story and see more photos in the San Antonio Business Journal.

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The City of San Antonio’s Train for Jobs SA program has struggled to meet its promised results, but there’s hope for a voter-approved program set to begin in the spring.

The program that started in the middle of a pandemic designed to help those impacted by job loss received a lot of interest leading up to September 2020.

The City of San Antonio reports more than 17,000 people inquired about the program. More than 10,000 were deemed eligible participants, and 4,836 entered into training.

As of January 18, 2022, 1,157 were looking for jobs, and 1,049 had found new jobs through their training.

The city had touted during its inception that the $65 million program would help up to 10,000 people with job training.

District 9 Councilman John Courage said he is disappointed the program didn’t meet the expectations but understood it wasn’t for lack of effort.

“The goal of that first program was to try and help people get some immediate reskilling or retraining so that they could find a job in 2020-2021,” he said. “I think more people found their own way back into the workforce than we anticipated.”

Courage is optimistic the next phase of the city’s effort to strengthen the workforce will deliver better results.

The SA Ready to Work program will kick off in the spring this year, following a final plan approval by the city council, which might happen in February.

SA Ready to Work is a $200 million voter-approved program.

“It’s really geared towards helping us train people for the future, is going to be a game-changer for the city of San Antonio,” Courage said.

Mike Ramsey, director of the Workforce Development Program, said about $4.7 million of the $65 million allotted for the program were unspent and will go back to the city.

Ramsey said a marketing campaign would help inform the public about the SA Ready to Work program. This was something that was not available for Train for Jobs SA.

“We want to get as many people as possible assistance. That’s our goal. You know, it’s hard to predict in the very beginnings of a program how many people are going to take advantage,” Ramsey said.

This time around, he says the employers will have a say in helping to gear the type of training that will fill the jobs they have available, led by an advisory board.

“They’re looking at which training programs are approved for the work program on a quarterly basis so that we can have the flexibility to adjust and shift with the market as we see industries begin to grow and expand,” Ramsey said. ‘… We want to make sure that we are steering participants through our case management agencies into those programs.”

He said the community has to see this as a long-term investment that will yield results in the years to come, not right away.

People interested can pre-register for SA Ready to Work by calling 311.

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A major change was announced Monday for the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office as part of the collective bargaining agreement — no more arbitration, and the deputy discipline and appeals process is changing significantly.

“This is going to revolutionize the way disciplinary cases are handled within the sheriff’s office,” Sheriff Javier Salazar said.

Salazar announced BCSO would be adding a Citizen’s Advisory Action Board, or CAAB, as part of their disciplinary process.

“Citizens appointed by commissioners and Judge (Nelson) Wolff that are going to have the opportunity to hear certain disciplinary cases,” Salazar said.

Act 4 SA has been critical of how San Antonio police have handled discipline. When it comes to this plan for Bexar County deputies, Ananda Tomas, the executive director for ACT 4 SA, shared her initial reaction.

Firstly, ACT 4 SA believes in alternative solutions to policing. The size and scope of law enforcement in our community and across America has been too large for too long. That being said, we agree to the increase in pay for deputies, particularly for those working at the Bexar County Jail. Because we also believe in employers taking care of their employees. When an employee works a difficult, stressful job for long hours, but still struggles financially, it can lead to that employee being irritable, and even violent to both inmates, family, and other employees. Frankly, $30,000 annually is not enough for someone to support a family no matter what type of employment it is. This still does not excuse unjust aggression by anyone who has taken an oath to protect their community, but frankly, you cannot achieve accountable and compassionate law enforcement if you do not make sure to take care of those employees with great benefits, pay, and clear and transparent rules for discipline. That being said, this part of the agreement has to go hand-in-hand with full transparency, accountability, and strong discipline.

We are also glad that the community’s outcry over the past year against outside arbitrators using subjective opinions to bring back any officer, whether that’s police or sheriff’s deputies, has brought change. The Civil Service Commission has always been an option for appeal to a termination or suspension, but we know that law enforcement has sided with arbitrators, who do not even represent our community, because they have a higher chance to get their job back even after the most egregious misconduct. We as the community deserve a say in who serves us and our loved ones.

Finally, a civilian review board for county law enforcement has long been overdue, but we need to be wary of the fact that this board closely mirrors the same one we have at the city level for SAPD- which was recently named the worst civilian oversight system out of the 5 major Texas cities in 2020 by Rice University. That is because this advisory board only has basic review powers, and not auditor or monitor responsibilities like other cities. That means that the board is not able to give policy recommendations nor run independent investigations. It should also be made clear that the board simply gives a recommendation on discipline, but don’t make any decisions themselves. Finally, the board also falls under the collective bargaining agreement, meaning it is not truly independent from the sway of the deputies association. This is a step in the right direction- but should by no means be considered the best solution. We can still do better.

Ananda Tomas, Act 4 SA executive director

The cases that go before the new board are decided by the sheriff, complainant deputy, or respondent deputy.

The board will then give advice after hearing evidence in the case.

“Ultimately, it’s my decision to make,” Salazar said.

The sheriff can agree or disagree with their recommendations and go from there.

“Should a deputy disagree with my discipline? It’s the way it is now. They can take it to the Civil Service Board,” Salazar said.

That means no more third-party arbitrators.

The revamped Civil Service Board will consist of seven people instead of three who county commissioners and the county judge appoint.

“It’s a big step forward and a breakthrough in terms of having greater accountability of deputies,” Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff said.

Salazar said it keeps control over the process local, and the citizens impacted by those decisions get their voices heard.

“They’ve got to live with the consequences of, you know, keeping somebody in a profession that maybe doesn’t need to be anymore,” Salazar said.

Should the civil service board disagree with one of Salazar’s terminations, they have the power to overturn it.

“That part is not going to change. The part that will change is the ability for an out-of-state arbitrator to come in and make that change,” Salazar said.

In his announcement Monday, Salazar mentioned his office would not release body-worn camera footage in 10 days like commissioners asked for last month. Instead, they would need 30 days.

This CBA still needs to be signed off on by county commissioners.

The BCSO announcement comes as talks are still happening between the City of San Antonio and the San Antonio Police Officers Association. One of the big sticking points in that collective bargaining agreement is refining the arbitration process. After 11 months of negotiating, there is still no contract. The next meeting between the city and SAPOA is happening on January 31st.

San Antonio police need the public’s help identifying two men they say attacked and robbed a man outside of a gas station last month.

The robbery happened at the Exxon located in the 6100 block of IH 35 North in Selma on Dec. 31.

Police say a man was walking to his car from the Exxon when two men approached him and attacked him unprovoked. One of the men punched him and kicked him to the ground, then took his wallet and cellphone.

The two men got into a white sedan and drove away from the scene, police said.

Officers said the victim suffered multiple injuries as a result of the attack.

When caught, the two men will be charged with aggravated robbery.

Crime Stoppers may pay up to $5,000 for information that leads to the suspect’s arrest. Anyone with information is asked to call 210-224-7867. Tipsters can remain anonymous.

A rating agency has taken CPS Energy’s bond rating down a notch less than two weeks after city council passed a rate increase that was supposed to help keep the utility’s credit strong.

Moody’s Investor’s Service announced Monday it had downgraded CPS Energy’s senior lien revenue bond rating from Aa1 to Aa2 and its junior lien revenue bond rating from Aa2 to Aa3. Bond ratings factor into how much interest the utility has to pay when borrowing money.

Navy Fireman 1st Class Frank Nicoles was born and raised in Eau Claire, Wisconsin in January of 1917. Nicoles lived with his grandparents and eventually enlisted in the Navy in 1940.

“He enlisted, actually, 82 years ago today in the Navy,” Jack Collier said. Collier is Nicoles’ extended family through marriage. “My wife would be Frank’s first cousin, two generations removed. So basically, her grandfather was a first cousin of Frank.”

Only two short months after enlisting, Nicoles was assigned on the USS Oklahoma battleship along with his younger brother, John C. Nicoles.

“His younger brother actually joined at 17 (years old), and I guess he probably asked to be assigned to the same ship,” Collier said.

Their military careers would eventually lead them to Pearl Harbor, and on December 7, 1941, an attack on the USS Oklahoma left 429 service members dead.

While his younger brother survived, Frank did not. Frank was only 24 years old. According to an article from the Eau Claire newspaper published in 1941, Frank’s grandfather received a statement that notified him of his grandson’s fate.

The statement read:

“After exhaustive search it has been found impossible to locate your ward, Frank Edward Nicoles, fireman first class U.S. navy, and he has therefore been officially declared to have lost his life in the service of his country as of December seventh, nineteen forty-one. The department expresses to you its sincerest sympathy.”

Nicoles was reported “Missing in Action” by the Navy Department.

His remains were buried and marked as “Unknown” in the Punchbowl National Cemetery in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Generations later, Frank’s remains were identified by modern DNA analysis.

“The government actually used mitochondrial DNA, DNA from the mother’s side. My wife’s whole family is from the father’s side so, there are two individuals they actually collected DNA from,” Collier said.

The process of identification began in 2013 under the leadership of the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency. The remains of the 429 service members were recovered and analyzed at labs in Hawaii and Nebraska.

According to a press release from organizers, “The two labs, staffed by anthropologists and forensic archeologists began the largest skeletal identification project in the world.”

Frank’s family, who lives in Austin was contacted about the positive findings in 2016.

“It was a surprise to hear that he had been identified,” Christopher Thompson said. Thompson was only five months old when his cousin died. “We had long ago given up any thought of that happening, and it’s kind of gratifying to pull this all back together.”

His family petitioned for Frank’s remains to be moved closer to home.

“In 2020, we made the decision to have a burial,” Collier said. “We waited a year and a half, almost two years to do this. The decision (to bring him to Texas) was because there was more family down here.”

His remains finally arrived on Friday at the San Antonio International Airport thanks in part to the help of Mission Park Funeral Chapels and Cemeteries.

“We actually went to what they call the Ramp Ceremony on Friday where we met the plane, and they took the remains off while keeping all the passengers on board,” Collier said “It was very moving.”

On Monday afternoon, the sailor had a proper burial ceremony at Ft Sam Houston National Cemetery with full honors.

“I’m very pleased to see it,” Thompson said.

Alan Lowry from San Antonio was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes (T1D), a year after his twin brother, when he was 6 years old.

“It’s an autoimmune disease where my immune system thinks my pancreas is something bad, so it attacks it, and now it doesn’t produce insulin,” Lowry said. “So, I have to inject it through syringes or an insulin pump.”

Living with the day-to-day stress of Type 1 diabetes has caused Lowry a lot of stress.

“I’m one miscalculation away from a really serious emergency. If I have low-blood sugar, cells don’t have the energy to function, organs start turning off, the brain, lungs, heart,” he explained.

High-blood sugar is also dangerous, slowly putting wear and tear and strain on the body.

In 2015, Lowry got an insulin pump and it changed his life. He then researched where the technology came from, and saw that the organization JDRF had a lot to do with advancement in technology and treatment.

He soon became a board member at JDRF, a national nonprofit that funds research for T1D and offers a support system for patients and their families.

Recently, JDRF helped fund a clinical study where Vertex Pharmaceuticals used stem cell therapy in a T1D patient.

They call it the biggest advancement for the disease in 100 years, since the very first insulin injection treatment.

“They took donated stem cells and injected them into someone else’s body and that allowed a Type 1 diabetic to lie with a 91% insulin free regimen,” Lowry said.

The stem cell therapy restored the body’s natural ability to create and regulate insulin and freed the first Type 1 diabetic participant from insulin injections.

When asked what this means for people like him, Lowry smiled with visible joy and relief.

“Gosh there’s so many possibilities! This is the first large step towards an actual practical cure where someone with diabetes could live the same life as someone without diabetes,” he said.

Lowry said this stem cell research is still in the early stages.

“There’s a lot of work to do. More clinical trials, more data to be collected,” he said.

However, there’s also more hope than ever.

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When Lisa Gill found a home and a few acres outside of Austin, she wanted to close the deal fast. So, she got creative.

“The sellers had two aging donkeys on the property,” she said. “So, to sweeten the deal, I told them I would keep them.”

The housing market can be a challenging one for buyers right now. What Gill learned is that you may have to go above and beyond to get the house.

“It’s crazy,” said. Matt Till, realtor with Kuper Sotheby’s International Realty. “I submitted (a bid) this morning that’s up against 26 offers.”

He’s also seeing what he called an “insane amount of cash buyers” as people from the West and East coasts can get so much more house here for their money.

While area sales for December tapered off by about 1% compared to last year, they are still beating pre-pandemic sales figures, according to data from the San Antonio Board of Realtors.

High demand and limited supply continue to drive up prices, too. The median price of December sales was $311,000, a 19% increase over the previous year, according to SABOR.

It’s a strong sellers’ market as more and more buyers are bidding above list price.

But for buyers who can’t do that, there are other ways to navigate the market and try to stand out.

“Really, you have to be ready to pounce,” Till said.

Having a loan pre-approval is essential. If you can, it can be beneficial to have your financial information vetted in advance and have a firm pledge for a loan in hand.

Some buyers are putting down extra earnest money to show they’re serious, Till said.

“Another thing would be a clean contract,” he said.

That means not asking for help with closing costs, other concessions, and being nit-picky about minor repairs. He does not advise skipping inspections.

“Letters are still a big thing,” Till said. “People write letters to the seller to try to sway a seller to their side.”

It can pay off by accommodating the seller. For example, if you don’t need immediate move-in, you could give the sellers ample time to move out.

“So, offering a lease-back for up to 90 days, and sometimes, they are doing it rent-free,” Till said.

As for Gill, her deal eventually fell through. So, while she doesn’t need to care for the donkeys, she also doesn’t have the house.

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