Project History

The San Antonio River has been the focus of improvements and ambitious plans for most of the past century. Here’s a brief timeline.

The Witte Museum Collection

Construction underway on the Museum Reach in 2007

San Antonio River Authority

1910s

Influenced by the City Beautiful movement, architects Alfred Giles and Harvey Page develop plans for the beautification and flood control for the river. The first beautification effort in the downtown river bend established a uniform channel with rock lined walls and sodded and planted banks.

1929

As the Great Depression swept the United States, local visionary Robert Hugman transformed a 2-mile section of the River into a series of waterways reminiscent of his travels to Venice, Italy. The San Antonio River was unique, with the potential for even greater transformation ahead.

1941

The pilot channel was deepened, three dams were constructed, underground drains built, and flood gates installed at both ends of the river loop. Aesthetic features included stone walkways, stairwells and graceful footbridges. An outdoor river bend theatre was added, indigenous trees and plants were preserved, and Hugman’s northern flood gate was adorned with arches and an arbor that lend an Old World Spanish flair. San Antonio’s River Walk was born.

1946

Bexar County and the San Antonio River Authority (SARA) entered into a partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to improve flood control along 31 miles of the river and its tributaries. The Channel Improvements Project involved realignment and channelization of the river system and continues to provide an efficient but unattractive river channel that moves floodwaters quickly away from urbanized areas.

1968

San Antonio hosted HemisFair, designed to be a mini-world’s fair; the River became a vibrant hub of activity, charming tourists and locals alike. Developers, City officials, and local chambers of commerce all recognized the huge potential of the San Antonio River.

1980s

Leaders at the San Antonio River Authority, the City of San Antonio, and Bexar County officials began discussions about the modern River Improvements Project.

1997

The City of San Antonio included "Expanding the River Walk" in its Master Plan, leading to the creation of the San Antonio River Oversight Committee (SAROC).

1998

Numerous plans to develop the River were discussed and presented over the three decades following HemisFair but none became a reality. With the establishment of the SAROC, the San Antonio River Improvements Project idea was first presented as an official "plan" for the River. Comprised of 22 civic and neighborhood leaders who advise the City on the planning, design, project management, construction and funding for proposed river improvements, the Committee also provides a critical open public forum for citizen input. It has remained a constant presence in the SARIP for the last decade.

2001

The SWA Group, Inc., commissioned by the City of San Antonio, Bexar County, the San Antonio River Authority, and the San Antonio River Oversight Committee, produced the award-winning Concept Design Guidelines, documenting a community vision for the improvements to the river. The plans included extending development of the San Antonio River for 13-miles beyond the existing Downtown River Walk, with a “Museum Reach” to the north (approximately 4 miles from Lexington Street to Hildebrand Avenue), a “Mission Reach” to the south (approximately 8 miles from Lone Star Boulevard to Mission Espada) and the short one-mile “Eagleland Reach” (from South Alamo to Lone Star Boulevard).

2003

The San Antonio River Foundation was established to secure community involvement and financial resources to enhance the natural beauty, recreational use, and public appreciation of the entire River and its tributaries in Bexar, Wilson, Karnes and Goliad counties. Today, the River Foundation has raised over $13 million dollars in private funding from individuals and corporations towards the $50 million needed to ensure the SARIP is world class. Private dollars raised by the River Foundation will be used for art and architectural enhancements, public parks, trails, boat landings and other amenities.

2004

Design teams were hired to develop the Concept Design Guidelines into more specific design features for each "reach" of the project. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers completed a General Re-Evaluation Report, analyzing the flood control work completed in the historic Mission Reach section in the 1960s, defining its involvement in the future San Antonio River Improvements Project. When the preliminary design was completed, the Corps was approved to proceed with the Mission Reach Eco-system Restoration Project.

2007

Construction on both the Mission Reach and the Urban Segment of the Museum Reach of the SARIP began. The Urban Segment in the Museum Reach broke ground in May, 2007, and is expected to be completed in May 2009. The Mission Reach broke ground in October, 2007, and is expected to be completed in stages through mid-2010. The Park Segment of the Museum Reach will be the last phase of the project; it still awaits final design and identification of funding sources.