Pearl will be adding 10 retail buildings by 2028.
Mike Sutter/San Antonio Express-News
The developer behind Pearl is adding 10 retail buildings to the popular culinary hub in an effort to attract more all-day customers.
Oxbow Development Group plans to construct an additional 85,000 square feet of retail space along Avenue A. Pearl currently has 14 apparel, home goods, book and gift stores and a spa. Gonzalez said the additional retail buildings could have room for one restaurant.
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Expanding retail at Pearl would draw more people Monday through Friday and boost sales for existing tenants, including restaurants.
“I don’t think this was something we were talking about years ago, but it’s part of a strategy to create more walkability and vibrancy, as well as more midday traffic,” said Omar Gonzalez, director of development. “We just want to make sure Pearl isn’t just known as a place to come eat a meal, but it’s also a place to linger, and there’s something to do any time of the day.”
READ MORE: Pearl developer plans to convert old New Braunfels mill into mixed-use development
Pearl’s evolution
Construction is set to begin early next year and be completed by 2028. The project will cost an estimated $18 million, according to filings with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation. Details in state filings are preliminary and subject to change without notice.
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To make way for the 10 new buildings, Oxbow Development plans to demolish a former can-recycling building at 300 E. Grayson St. and the former Pearl Brewery garage at 250 E. Grayson St. The garage is a designated historic landmark on the city’s registry.
The company has filed an application with the city’s Historic and Design Review Commission for approval to demolish the garage and will present its plans at an Oct. 7 meeting.
In addition to the new buildings, Oxbow Development is upgrading Pearl Parkway to enhance the pedestrian shopping experience. The company plans to repave the asphalt street with new material and add shade trees and benches. The street was closed to through traffic in 2020.
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“We want to make it look like a safe and comfortable place to walk on,” Gonzalez said. “We still have to accommodate trucks going in and out for delivery and also fire trucks, but will designate which areas are for vehicles versus for pedestrians.”
Oxbow Development is partnering with Dallas-based 3-O Real Estate Partners on the retail project. Gonzalez said Oxbow Development wanted to bring on the Dallas developer because of its expertise in the retail industry. Alamo Architects and Don B. McDonald Architects will design the buildings.
The real estate firm has not selected any new tenants, but the company hopes to curate a “one-of-a-kind mix” of local, national and regional retailers and service-based businesses that “reflect Pearl’s distinct identity,” Gonzalez said. The firm plans to announce the tenants in early 2027 at groundbreaking.
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“This was more of an evolution of Pearl, where you start to see how customers behave and what the district needs and wants and deliver on that,” he added. “People like going to a place that has multiple retail destinations where you can walk outside and get all of your shopping done. In this kind of world where malls are dying, experiential retail is doing really well, so we want to capitalize on that trend.”
Building an urban district
The boost in retail at Pearl coincides with Oxbow Development’s plans to build 140,000 square feet of office space at 102 E. Josephine St.
“We want to inspire these office workers to leave their office at lunch, grab something to eat and maybe on their way back, pick up a gift for a loved one or go shopping before heading straight home,” Gonzalez said. “This all plays into this ecosystem of making it a real urban district.”
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In addition to the office space, the Josephine Street project will include 86 luxury apartments and 20,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space. Construction is expected to start later this year.
Oxbow Development also is working on several other projects in the area.
Across the San Antonio River from Pearl, the firm recently completed the 262-unit Coopers Row complex and is building 75 adjacent apartments and a hotel named Perlen House, which is expected to have lower rates than Hotel Emma. It’s set to be completed in late spring or early summer next year.
MORE DEVELOPMENT NEWS: Pearl developer plans more office space as demand grows for upscale workplaces
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Near Perlen House, Oxbow Development is constructing a 323-unit complex and parking garage at 1315 E. Elmira St.
In the southeast corner of downtown, across from Hemisfair, the company is working on a mixed-use development dubbed Southtown Aldea with apartments, retail space and parking. Gonzalez said the company currently is demolishing structures at the site and is finalizing third-party equity financing.
As for future expansion plans for Pearl, Gonzalez said, “any land we own that has been used as a surface parking lot” could be a potential development site.