SAN ANTONIO – An effort to activate a vacant Southtown parcel cleared another hurdle.
Oxbow Development Group received a certificate of appropriateness from the Historic and Design Review Commission (HDRC) on Oct. 15 for its Southtown Aldea mixed-use project. The Silver Ventures development arm is planning to build three properties on the former San Antonio Independent School District headquarters site with residential, retail and parking uses between Hemisfair and the Lavaca neighborhood.
The firm is eyeing 275 market-rate apartments, 40,000 square feet of commercial space and a 535-space parking garage. Infrastructure changes include opening Matagorda Street at East César E. Chávez Boulevard and closing it at Lavaca to prevent traffic from overflowing into the neighborhood.
HDRC passed the measure unanimously, with public comments supporting it from Lavaca neighborhood members. Deconstructing and rebuilding a historic house, known as the Pollock Muench House, is a key part of Oxbow’s plans and was tentatively approved, though city staff stipulated that more detailed documents be submitted to the panel for an additional layer of approval.
Omar Gonzalez, the company’s director of development, said moving the structure was the linchpin that made the entire project work.
“If that building stayed there, none of this would be possible because we couldn’t build the garage,” he said in 2024. “So what we said is, ‘We’ll return that building and put it back into the neighborhood so then it has neighbors that were built in that same vintage, and its front porch would then face someone else’s front porch.”
More recently, in advance of the meeting, Gonzalez said in a statement that the project has evolved to match the growing enthusiasm for the proposed changes to Hemisfair and the surrounding area.
“The future of Hemisfair and Southtown is bright, reflecting growing enthusiasm for San Antonio’s ongoing urban revitalization,” he said.
Alamo Architects and Don B. McDonald Architects are on the design team. Construction would begin this year, and is planned to finish in 2027 or 2028.
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