SAN ANTONIO – There’s pride in preservation, especially for one of San Antonio’s oldest neighborhoods.
Lavaca has been an artery to the heart of downtown San Antonio for more than a century — but even historic communities have growing pains.
Neighbors said an empty lot between Florida Street and Carolina Street has caused headaches. They said the land was cleared more than five years ago.
But within the last few months, the property owner has been looking at options for development.
Melissa Stendhal, president of the Lavaca Neighborhood Association, said businesses have started contacting the neighborhood association with ideas.
“Everything from like a storage unit to a restaurant, and the gas station, of course,” she said.
Residents like Stendhal said they’re not opposed to development, but they want something that blends well with the neighborhood and benefits their community.
“We need to de-emphasize serving highways and recognize that this is a community,” Stendhal said.
Resident Hilda Juarez said they “want the city to know that we’re here.”
“You’re coming to the heart of San Antonio, where we have 100-year-old houses and a lot of history here,” Juarez said.
This month, District 1 Councilwoman Sukh Kaur posted on Instagram that the property owner was working with the city to create a plan for the land that’s advantageous to the neighborhood.
“(The property owner) is really working with us to figure out what we can do with this land,” Kaur told KSAT. “We’ve got to figure out what’s possible. We’ve had some conversations with parks and the housing departments.”
Kaur is seeking community ideas on how to fill the space. She said so far, a trailhead for the Bike Network Plan and housing have been top submissions.
She said anyone with ideas can reach out to the District 1 Office.
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