Arthur “Hap” Veltman Jr. was a San Antonio attorney, entrepreneur, real-estate developer, preservationist, arts advocate and openly gay civic figure whose work connected downtown revitalization with a belief in inclusion.
A city of places
His legacy is visible in projects associated with the River Walk, San Antonio Country, the Bonham Exchange, Kangaroo Court, the Blue Star Arts Complex and the Casino Club Building. This biography is designed to grow as historical research is completed and primary sources are documented.
Human rights and belonging
Hap’s businesses were not only commercial ventures. The spaces he created could also function as social experiments—places where people who were often separated by convention could meet, dance, create and belong.
An evolving historical record
This tribute distinguishes verified facts, personal recollections and interpretive storytelling. Future revisions will add citations, oral histories, photographs and material from historical collections.