Cultural Benefits

Expressions of Our Community

The San Antonio River and its history are the heartbeat of our community, a repository for remarkable stories from the past, a ribbon that ties our multi-cultural communities together, and a conduit to the future.

Reconnecting the people of San Antonio with this rich culture and history is an integral part of the San Antonio River Improvements Project (SARIP) and the efforts of the River Foundation:

• Access to important sites. Pathways along both sides of the river will link to other attractions like the historic missions, the Hot Wells Hotel Ruins, the San Antonio Museum of Art, the new Rio Perla development, the Witte Museum, and the San Antonio Zoo.
• Hands-on learning. Restoration of several of the Spanish colonial irrigation ditches (acequias) will provide rich opportunities for hands-on educational programs in both history and science.
• Portals to the Past. New artist-designed Mission Portals will entice people to travel the short distance from the river’s banks to the historic missions’ just minutes away, connecting them to a rich past and new exhibits and activities being developed by the missions.
• Museum walks. Cultural institutions like the San Antonio Museum of Art and the Witte Museum are planning new additions to offer to increased visitors, including an outdoor sculpture area at the Museum of Art and a new Center for Rivers and Aquifers at the Witte.