Mission Portals (San Jose, San Juan, Espada) Overview

Four portals, or gateways, will connect the river to San Antonio’s historic missions, inviting visitors to make the short journey from the river to each of the nearby missions: Concepción, San Jose, San Juan and Espada. Designed by teams of artists, architects, landscape architects and historians, the portals will inform and inspire as they encourage discovery of the entire range of enhancements along the Mission Reach.

San Antonio’s Franciscan missions flourished as thriving communities between 1745 and the 1780’s. The San Antonio River provided the communities living within the mission compounds with fresh water for drinking, cooking and bathing as well as crop irrigation. The new mission gateways will connect our missions to the river once again.