SAN ANTONIO-Former US Housing and Urban Development Secretary Henry Cisneros, now chairman of American CityVista, and Kaufman & Broad Home Corp. envision 125 acres in San Antonio as the gateway for bridging the Digital Divide in Texas while history-making negotiations are under way for other high-tech projects in Denver, Las Vegas, Houston and Los Angeles.

“If we can breach the Digital Divide in homes that are affordable that will be a key factor” in narrowing the gap between America's have-nots and haves, Cisneros tells GlobeSt.com. Only the 600-home development in south San Antonio has been sealed. Talks have begun for a high-tech development of up to 12,000 smart dwellings–single-family and multifamily–at the former Stapleton Airport, which is a go for an American CityVista mid-market housing project but not necessarily smart-home savvy units. “It's too early to tell if it's going to be the same in Colorado,” says Cisneros. America CityVista also is searching for land and partnerships to bring identical developments to economically challenged sections of the other three markets, Cisneros has disclosed. “The plan certainly is to build more areas than San Antonio,” says Cisneros.

At the heart of the innovative Lago Vista undertaking are key partnerships with Gateway Computers, Southwestern Bell Communications, Time Warner Inc. and Univision. SBC will lay high-quality voice and data lines offering high-speed DSL and traditional phone service. Through the other partnerships, Time Warner will provide cable hookups; Univision will deliver Internet Service; and Gateway will round out the project with PC packages valued at $1,000 each. Cisneros says the deal will only add $25 per month to mortgages for Lago Vista homebuyers, who must make a three-year commitment for the high-tech service.