Existing Conditions

Downtown possesses many assets, some historic and others as a result of new wants and needs. The San Antonio River Walk, the Alamo, Mission Concepcion,San Fernando Cathedral, Hemisfair, San Pedro Creek Park, Blue Star Arts Complex, Historic Market Square, the Tower of the Americas, and many historic neighborhoods are just a few of the places that make Downtown San Antonio unique. Assets such as the Alameda and Majestic theaters reflect the area’s history as a center of nightlife and entertainment. Downtown also features some of the most walkable and bikeable areas in the entire city and is a major transit hub. While Downtown may be primarily associated with a strong tourism and hospitality industry, other significant employers include various governmental agencies, healthcare, and finance. It is also an emerging center for IT (information technology) and professional service jobs. Other assets include the redeveloping Hemisfair Park and San Pedro Creek improvements.

One of Downtown’s greatest assets, a strong tourism industry, also poses one of its greatest challenges. The majority of new development,in particular mid to high-rise development, in Downtown in the last several decades has been hotels and related services. Long identified as a tourist destination, the abundance of hotel development also drives business for restaurants, bars, entertainment, and retail establishments. Recently developed housing is not affordable for many people already living in the Downtown Area, with average rental rates higher than the rest of the county for all types of units. While still highly walkable, the street level pedestrian experience currently falls far short of the River Walk experience. The Downtown Area suffers widespread gaps in the sidewalk network and areas of poor sidewalk condition, prevalent surface parking detracting from the pedestrian experience, inconsistent and inefficient lighting and would benefit from better connectivity with adjacent neighborhoods. Additionally, lack of a widespread tree canopy and an abundance of impervious cover combine to create a heat island in the Downtown Area.

Opportunity abounds for the Downtown Area. The abundance of parking lots and garages present a substantial inventory of underutilized land that may be redeveloped for more beneficial uses such as housing, office space and resident supporting retail and services. Likewise, the vacant land and industrial sites found mainly around the periphery of the plan area are prime redevelopment opportunities that can help provide more mixed use places, residential options, and 18-hour amenities. It is essential that these redevelopments be sensitive to the context of the areas surrounding them. While Downtown is physically separated from adjacent neighborhoods by the elevated highways that ring and in some cases divide the plan area, the space beneath them presents opportunities for the creation of creative public spaces and safer, more comfortable links the surrounding neighborhoods.