Can this Hill Country city turn itself into a hub for the arts?

New Braunfels leaders say they'd like to foster the Hill Country city's arts scene and turn the downtown area into a cultural hub - but it will take time, money and buy-in from the community to make it happen.

The New Braunfels City Council this week signed off the New Braunfels Arts and Culture Master Plan, a proposal the city calls "a roadmap designed to guide arts and cultural development in the community for the next 15 years."

The plan, commissioned by the city a year ago, was put together by consulting firm Designing Local and a nine-member city committee.

The 126-page document lays out a vision for boosting New Braunfels' arts and cultural scene. Its highest priorities include: creating a historical preservation plan, expanding the city's cultural arts program and keeping a better record of cultural events in the city.

The proposal also details the challenges the fast-growing city faces as it tries to become an arts hub.

"New Braunfels already has the bones of a cultural destination," the city's plan reads. "Talent is here, the potential is here, but the spaces, coordination and investment haven't caught up."

The plan calls for creating a downtown cultural district, as well as investing in and expanding cultural spaces such as the New Braunfels Civic and Convention Center and the Comal County Fairgrounds. The city also described creating a "welcoming gateway" of public art heading into downtown along Seguin Avenue.

As consultants and city officials discussed the plan with residents, "many suggested repurposing the current Civic Center into a Cultural Arts Center. Others championed building a new 1,500-2,000-seat venue or a large, multi-purpose arena," the plan says.

The plan doesn't require the city to implement any new projects. It also doesn't set aside any funding for some of the ideas.

A survey of residents and local artists said the city lacks spaces to host performances or art events. Those surveyed also said "cultural offerings" in the city weren't fully funded or advertised, calling the current process to secure funding "opaque" and an "uneven playing field."

Potentially starting a public art fund could also be in the cards, according to the plan. A "healthy" find for the city could pull between $150,000 and $250,000 annually from capital improvement project or hotel tax funds, the plan said.

The city noted in the plan document that it "will not be able to implement the entirety of the community vision on its own," calling on private investors and local foundations to play a bigger role in growing an arts scene.

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This story was originally published April 30, 2026 at 6:58 PM.