Preservation Events & Announcements

May is National Preservation Month!

Join the Office of Historic Preservation as we participate in National Preservation Month in May.  We have a whole month of activities and programs planned to celebrate historic preservation in San Antonio. See our Preservation Month page at the link below for a complete list of events!

National Preservation Month 2012

 

Guided Running & Walking Tour of Monte Vista - Saturday, June 16th

Join us for next Go! Historic SA Guided Running and Walking Tour of the Monte Vista Historic District on Saturday, June 16th.  Learn about the history and architecture of this wonderful historic neighborhood! The guided tours are a great way to experience San Antonio’s historic sites and get fit.  At various stops along the routes, tour guides share stories behind the buildings, homes, neighborhoods, and parks of our historic city. Runners and walkers of all abilities are welcome, and participants are divided into small groups according to experience. Tours are $15 and include a San Antonio “Know Your Place” t-shirt.  Register online or in person the day of the event.  For a list of all upcoming tours, see the link below.

Go! Historic SA Guided Tours Schedule

      

Five Points Potential Historic District

A public meeting was held on November 15th at the request of property owners within the Five Points neighborhood for a potential Five Points Historic District.   See the map below for the proposed district boundary.  Property owners within the boundary area have a minimum of 90 days from the date of the public meeting to return signature forms either in favor or opposition to the proposed district designation.  For further information about the potential Five Points Historic District, see the public meeting presentation at the link below or contact Elizabeth Porterfield at 207-3327.

Proposed Five Points Historic District Map

Proposed Five Points Historic District Public Presentation

 

Highland Park - Eligible for Local Historic District Designation

Highland Park is an early 20th-century neighborhood on the city's near southeast side that has been determined to be eligible for local historic district designation.  OHP staff presented information at the Highland Park Neighborhood Association meeting on March 14th about the history of the neighborhood and what it would mean if the neighborhood decides to pursue historic district designation.  The Highland Park presentation is available at the link below.  For more information, please contact Elizabeth Porterfield at 207-3327.

Highland Park Presentation

 

 

Mahncke Park - Eligible for Local Historic District Designation

Mahncke Park is an urban neighborhood largely composed of 1920s bungalows designed by developer H.C. Thorman.  Although currently a Neighborhood Conservation District (NCD), Mahncke Park has recently expressed interest in becoming a local historic district.  OHP staff presented general information about historic district designation at a Mahncke Park Neighborhood Association meeting in January.  At this time, the neighborhood is considering the potential historic district boundary and will discuss the potential boundary at their NA meeting in May.  The map at the link below identifies the current Mahncke Park NCD boundary and resources that have been identified as contributing and non-contributing to a potential historic district.  When a potential district boundary has been finalized, OHP staff will hold a public meeting for all property owners within the boundary area.  All owners will be notified of the meeting (when scheduled) by mail.  For more information, please contact Elizabeth Porterfield at 207-3327 or elizabeth.porterfield@sanantonio.gov.

Mahncke Park Resource Map

 

15th Annual US/ICOMOS International Symposium - May 31st-June 2nd

The International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) is a non-governmental international organization dedicated to the conservation of the world's monuments and sites. The U.S. National Committee of ICOMOS (US/ICOMOS) is part of this worldwide network of people, institutions, government agencies, and private corporations who support the preservation of our global cultural heritage. 

The 2012 US/ICOMOS International Symposium “Confluence of Cultures: World Heritage in the Americas” in San Antonio will be an opportunity to celebrate the cultural heritage of the Americas.  In particular, attention will be brought to the five San Antonio Missions, including The Alamo.  Collectively, the San Antonio Missions have “outstanding universal value” as defined by the guidelines for the World Heritage Sites.  A World Heritage nomination has been written for the Missions, now on the US “tentative list” for consideration.

The Symposium will take place May 31 – June 2, 2012 at the Tropicano Hotel.  For additional information or to register, click here. 

ICOMOS Symposium 

 

Westside Cultural Resource Survey

The Office of Historic Preservation has partnered with  the Westside Historic Preservation Group, the Esperanza Peace and Justice Center, the Westside Development Corporation (WDC), the San Antonio Conservation Society, the National Trust for Historic Preservation Partners in the Field Program, and other members of the Westside community to launch a Westside Cultural Resource Survey.  A Kick-Off Event was held in February 2011 to initiate the project. The Paseo por el Westside took place in May 2011 during National Preservation Month and featured neighborhood walking tours, Westside presentations, food, music, and more.  

The Westside Cultural Resource Survey initiative is an ongoing project to identify, document, and protect places of cultural, historical, and architectural significance on the Westside of San Antonio.  Working with our community partners, we have identified numerous historic properties that are potentially eligible as historic landmarks (see Potential Landmark link below).  Stay tuned for more information about this exciting initiative!  If you are interested in participating in a Westside survey, please contact Elizabeth Porterfield at 207-3327 or elizabeth.porterfield@sanantonio.gov or the Esperanza Peace and Justice Center at 228-0201.

                            Westside Potential Landmarks                         Westside Matters Poster                         

            

San Antonio Conservation Society Recipients of 2011 Community Grants Program

Using the proceeds from its 2011 presentation of “A Night In Old San Antonio^®” (NIOSA^®), the San Antonio Conservation Society has awarded $85,000 this year in grants to 13 historic preservation and educational projects that fulfill its purpose to “preserve and to encourage the preservation of historic buildings, objects, places and customs relating to the history of Texas, its natural beauty and all that is admirably distinctive to our State.” 

Since 1990, the Society has provided grants in the San Antonio area for the restoration or rehabilitation of residential and commercial historic structures that are at least 50 years old. Since 2000 alone, the Society’s grants program has awarded nearly two million dollars to individuals and organizations.  For a list of this year's recipients, click on the link below.

Conservation Society 2011 Community Grants Program Recipients

 

King William Neighborhood Designated a Cultural Arts District

The King William neighborhood has been designated a “Cultural Arts District” by the Texas Commission of the Arts.  The King William Historic District, the oldest in Texas, features numerous artist galleries and venues including Blue Star and Say Si just to name a few.  Check out the website at the link below for more information about the artistic and cultural attractions of the neighborhood.

King William Cultural Arts District

                                        

Historic Conservation Series on Texas Public Radio News

Texas Public Radio (TPR) News presents a special series of news reports highlighting historic conservation initiatives in and around San Antonio. The unique cultural heritage of South Central Texas is imprinted in the decades and even centuries-old architecture that still stands amidst our modern metropolitan landscape. Special guest reporter Michelle Koidin Jaffee recounts the rich history of San Antonio by sharing stories about preservation efforts around our community. This special series is made possible by a grant from the San Antonio Conservation Society.  Click on the link below for stories on the O. Henry House, the Borglum Studio in Brackenridge Park, Fort Sam Houston, and San Pedro Springs Park.

Texas Public Radio News Historic Conservation Series

 

Get Lost in the River Walk! - Smartphone Tour of Original Hugman Features

The San Antonio River Walk is a nationally recognized tourist attraction and one of the country’s most unique urban linear parks.  An initial concept for beautification and commercial development of the San Antonio River was conceived in 1929 by a visionary young architect named Robert H. H. Hugman. Work began on the River Walk project in 1939 under partial funding from the Works Progress Administration (WPA). Hugman’s River Walk included the construction of numerous walkways, staircases, bridges, lush plantings, and the Arnesan River Theater. Although Hugman was dismissed from the project by the city in 1940, he was honored in the 1970s for his significant contribution to San Antonio. 

In recognition of R. H. H. Hugman’s important role in the development of the River Walk, the City has installed commemorative plaques at original Hugman features. The bronze plaques replicate the architectural seal used on Hugman’s original drawings.

A new Hugman Riverwalk Smartphone Tour has recently been unveiled highlighting 12 key Hugman features.  We invite you to explore our River Walk using this Historic Hugman River Walk Tour complete with text by renowned San Antonio historian Lewis Fisher and historic photos.  Get lost in the history of Hugman’s River Walk…enjoy your discovery!

The City of San Antonio was recently recognized with the International Downtown Association’s (IDA) Downtown Merit Award for its work on the Historic Hugman River Walk Tour.

 

Texas Star Trail Downtown Walking Tour Brochure

The San Antonio Conservation Society has unveiled the newly revised brochure for the self-guided Texas Star Trail Downtown Walking Tour of San Antonio’s historic sites. The Texas Star Trail Tour was initially produced by the Conservation Society in 1986 to celebrate Texas’ Sesquicentennial. With the help of the Office of Historic Preservation, the City’s Downtown Operations Department, and the Convention and Visitors Bureau, the walking tour has been updated to reflect the changes to our city’s core over the past 25 years.  

Historic sites are identified with a Texas Star medallion in the sidewalk in front of each structure. Smaller medallion markers in the sidewalk connect the sites along the 2.6 mile length. The revised Texas Star Trail brochure is available at the San Antonio Conservation Society’s headquarters at 107 King William Street, at the San Antonio Visitor Center at 317 Alamo Plaza, at the Office of Historic Preservation, and at the link below. Take a tour through downtown on the Texas Star Trail to discover our city's rich history!

Texas Star Trail Downtown Walking Tour Brochure

 

Houston Street Interpretive Kiosks

Explore downtown Houston Street and learn about the architecture and history of this significant commercial corridor through a series of interpretive kiosks. Former public telephone kiosks have been adaptively reused by the City's Downtown Operations Department and the Office of Historic Preservation, in partnership with the General Services Administration Good Neighbor Program. The eight kiosks between N. Alamo and N. Santa Rosa Streets feature interpretive panels highlighting many of the historic structures along Houston Street. 

Downtown Houston Street contains many examples of San Antonio’s spectacular commercial architecture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.  As San Antonio developed into the largest city in Texas by 1900, Houston Street was transformed from a muddy lane into the city’s major business corridor.  In the period roughly between 1880 and World War II, Houston Street experienced an unprecedented building boom which produced some of San Antonio’s most beautiful commercial structures.

Houston Street Kiosk Brochure and Map