Moses Rose’s owner accuses Alamo Trust of colluding with appraisers to undervalue his bar

Editor’s note: This story was updated to include a statement from the Alamo Trust.

The owner of Moses Rose’s Hideout, the downtown San Antonio bar slated for eminent domain takeover, is now accusing the Alamo Trust and appraisers contracted by the state agency of colluding to undervalue his business.

Owner Vince Cantu and attorney Dan Eldredge said late Tuesday in an emailed statement that private firm RSI & Associates intentionally skewed its appraisal of the business so the state agency could make a lowball offer.

In a statement emailed to the Current, Alamo Trust officials called Cantu’s latest allegation part of a “years-long refusal to operate in good faith.” They also said Cantu himself selected RSI to conduct the appraisal. 

“Mr. Cantu’s claims of a ‘bait and switch’ are categorically false,” Alamo Trust Executive Director Kate Rogers said. “Mr. Cantu has been offered $5.3 million — $4 million, or twice the appraised value for the property, and an additional $1.3 million for his business.”

RSI officials weren’t immediately available for comment.

After purchase negotiations between city officials and Cantu failed, city council voted in January to begin eminent domain proceedings against his bar, located at 516 E. Houston St., to make way for the $400 million Alamo Visitor Center and Museum.

In their “best and final offer,” San Antonio and the Alamo Trust together offered Cantu a $5.3 million buyout. However, he publicly rejected that offer April 23, arguing that it didn’t account for lost sales that would come with relocating.

In Tuesday’s statement, Cantu and his attorney said a “reliable, confidential source” came forth confirming the bar owner’s suspicion that RSI intentionally neglected to perform a valuation including “projected lost revenue” and “projected lost profit.”

According to Cantu, all parties involved agreed to include those projections.

“[The Alamo Trust] repeatedly asked me to come to the table and to open my books, saying they would be happy to pay me more if I did,” Cantu said in the statement. “But after I did, it appears the Alamo Trust directed RSI to change the rules and lower the amount of their valuation.”

Moses Rose’s would have been valued at around $27 million if RSI had included projected lost revenue in their valuation, Cantu claimed, citing his unnamed source.

“A good-faith offer of $9.02M would have ended this negotiation, and it could have been the start of restoring some honesty to this process,” Cantu added.

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This article appears in May 3-16, 2023.