SAN ANTONIO – The City of San Antonio has approved a rezoning request from a Tobin Hill-based investment firm for a redevelopment project along the St. Mary’s Strip.
Headwall Investments LLC, whose offices occupy space near McCullough Avenue and East Ashby Place, mere steps from the planned project, announced the approval in an Oct. 20 LinkedIn post.
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The project plans to convert four bungalow-style houses along the Strip into a mix of retail and food and beverage spaces. The land is nestled between East French Place and Rose Lane.
Tobin Hill sits just north of part of Interstate 35, sandwiched between Highway 281 and San Pedro Avenue. The neighborhood includes San Antonio College and a lively nightlife and restaurant corridor along St. Mary’s Street.
Headwall expects the project to “add daytime energy and complement the Strip’s historic nightlife,” the LinkedIn post said.
San Antonio’s Zoning Commission heard the request during its Oct. 7 meeting.
A driving reason for the rezoning request is the decision to develop the spaces for neighborhood commercial use through infill development practices and to add a parking lot, according to agenda documents from the Oct. 7 meeting.
Planetizen, an urban planning news and education website, defines infill development as “the construction of buildings or other facilities on previously unused or underutilized land located within an existing urban–or otherwise developed–area.”
The practice encourages density and reuse of underused or vacant land in urban areas.
According to its website, Headwall has two other urban infill projects in its portfolio in The Allen and The Zavell Portfolio, located in the 2100 block of McCullough Avenue and the 2100 block of North Main Avenue, respectively.
With the rezoning also comes the need to address parking, which, according to agenda documents, would put a parking lot behind a structure on the southern portion of the project.
The idea drew concern from residents, who wondered how parking would be regulated on an otherwise lively nighttime spot in San Antonio.
“They aren’t the best petrie dish for the nighttime activity that goes on around there,” the resident said in the October meeting.
Ashley Farrimond, a land use law attorney representing Headwall, who spoke during the meeting, said interest in a parking lot was expressed during early community engagement.
Who is allowed to park in the lot would be controlled by signage and the ability to institute fees, as the lot would be considered commercial and non-commercial. Landscape buffers and privacy fencing would help separate the lot from houses nearby, Farrimond said.
Details about potential tenants for the spaces are not immediately known.
Speaking directly before the commission approved the rezoning measures, Dr. Daniel Hansford Kellum Jr., District 1’s representative on the commission, noted his trust in the firm’s community investment.
“I think (Headwall Investments) do a very good job in managing both the evolution of the neighborhood as well as preservation of the neighborhood,” he said.
In an emailed statement to KSAT on Tuesday, District 1 Councilwoman Sukh Kaur pointed to the project serving as a revitalization tool.
“The upcoming Rose Lane project represents an opportunity to revitalizing our neighborhood, supporting new local businesses, and enhancing the unique character of the North St. Mary’s Strip without contributing to the parking concerns present,” Kaur said. “My office remains committed to ensuring that this development enhances the lives of Tobin Hill residents and visitors.
Kaur also pointed to residents’ concerns around noise, specifically a conditional stone wall to be included to mitigate noise.
“My office will continue to work closely with Headwall Investments, the Development Services Department, and Tobin Hill stakeholders to monitor these aspects as construction and operations move forward,” she said.
The Tobin Hill Neighborhood Association also approved the plan and zoning changes. KSAT reached out to the group, but did not hear back by publication time.
Headwall did not return a phone call from KSAT asking about the project’s planned timeline going forward.
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