Ongoing construction for the $185 million Alamo Visitor Center and Museum has moved toward Losoya to Alamo streets, posing challenges for businesses along Houston street and affecting traffic in the area.
The street, which includes parts of the Alamo Mission and battlefield footprint, will be closed until 2027, according to Alamo Trust, Inc.
Vehicle traffic will no longer be permitted to drive over the historic Mission and battlefield footprint — even after construction is completed.
On July 8, East Houston Street was closed to vehicle traffic and a fence was put around construction of the new museum, set to open in 2027.
Some small-business owners on Houston Street said they learned of the closures just a week and a half before the fence went up, but the Alamo told the San Antonio Report each business within a 600 ft radius of the Alamo Historic District was notified of the change back in 2018 as part of the street closure process.
In a statement, the Alamo Trust said it has provided wayfinding signage and updated maps in coordination with the city, and has converted Houston Street into a pedestrian-only zone post-construction. There’s still access allowed via Peacock Alley, but it’s often closed for events.
“We are dedicated to keeping businesses in the area informed and engaged through various proactive channels,” said Alamo Trust spokesman Jonathan Huhn. “These include quarterly stakeholder breakfast meetings, biweekly calls, weekly construction emails to key downtown stakeholders and nearby property and business owners, and participation in the City of San Antonio’s quarterly downtown construction updates.”
The shopping strip includes an artisan boutique, a Mexican art gallery, a haunted tour spot, a spa and a cookie shop.
Alejandra Martinez, owner of AlejandraMtzH Art on Houston Street, said she’s noticed more people walking by since the closures.
“Until now, we’re doing fine. We’re not sure what may happen later,” Martinez said as she painted a red hummingbird by the window, her live art visible to anyone walking by.
Theresa Bowen, general manager of Cookie Plug on Houston Street, said DoorDashers and Uber Eats delivery drivers have been negatively affected by the closures because they can’t park and run inside her store for orders. Now, they must search for nearby parking to walk over.
But for the number of customers walking in, often tourists, construction has sort of helped.
“It’s making people stop right in front of the store and you smell the cookies and they’re like, where’s that coming from,” Bowen said. “Last Thursday, I had a line in the afternoon. I actually had a line out the door. The last time I had a line out the door was Christmas.”
But people walking by are focused on getting around construction, not really interested in shopping, said Veronica Sandoval, owner of Regalos Mexicanos on East Houston Street. The construction hides her storefront, she said, so people often miss her store.
She said she wasn’t doing any business at all lately, and that Alamo construction will most likely put some stores out of business.
Construction has already affected the customer experience that Dewey Skin Studio offers. Owner Carmen Whizin wrote an impact statement to the city, the Alamo Trust and Centro San Antonio on July 22, letting officials know that the construction has disrupted deliveries and the peaceful and relaxing atmosphere essential for a spa experience.
It’s resulted in a decline in bookings and cancellations. As of Monday, the city and the Alamo Trust haven’t replied to her, she said.
Whizin said her electricity has been disrupted, disconnecting her wifi and not allowing her to cash her customers out and putting a stop to the music she played to distract customers from the construction, she said.
“We have already had a few customers indicate it was extremely difficult to get to and find the studio indicating they might not return,” she wrote.
Whizin said there has been a decrease in foot traffic and told officials she forecasting a 30% drop in revenue, which would put her business at risk for closing. FedEx and UPS have been unable to find her spa because of construction, they told her, and she’s had to suspend curbside pickup for customers.
“It is crucial that we find a resolution to the ongoing prolonged construction issues to minimize further disruption,” she said in her letter.
Centro San Antonio, which has offices on the second floor of the same building as the stores affected on Houston Street, is advocating for its neighbors.
Centro SA CEO Trish DeBerry on Monday said that Centro is communicating with the city about allocating money in the budget for grant opportunities for all the businesses being affected by construction in downtown.
This would include other construction projects affecting parts of downtown including Commerce, Santa Rosa Street and Broadway, DeBerry said, adding that the city should have a plan for funding for these types of grants.
The Alamo Trust had a discussion with business owners on the affected streets on July 10, Huhn said, to address concerns. A representative from the city’s Economic Development Department also attended to share information about a construction grant which closed on July 15.
The grant, no longer open for applications, was for small businesses to receive $35,000, but those businesses were required to show a loss in 2023 compared to 2022, before construction started.
In an email to The Alamo, San Antonio City Council District 1 and Centro San Antonio, Whizin requested officials offer a grant to help mitigate the negative effects construction has had on the small businesses on Houston Street.
“Our businesses were finally coming out of the dark cloud covid placed over us for several years, we have all been working hard to move forward. Only for that hard work to be washed away again from the many challenges we are now facing,” she said.
The city’s economic development department and District 1 office did not respond to questions about funding to mitigate the affects of construction on the small businesses, but DeBerry said that they heard Centro SA’s concerns loud and clear.
Centro has offered to match any funding the city offered to help the businesses affected by the construction for the new museum.
As part of the ongoing Alamo area construction, the city has closed South Alamo Street from Navarro Street, down Crockett Street, through Alamo Plaza and South Alamo to La Villita for sewer bypass construction. Closures are set to last 8 weeks.
One-way southbound travel will be maintained through the South Alamo corridor, and two lanes will remain available through Market Street at the South Alamo intersection for ongoing utility and storm drain construction.
Pedestrian access is available around the Alamo Plaza near the southern part of the Alamo Gardens and the passage between the Menger Hotel and the Alamo, and North to South on Alamo Plaza and East to West on Crockett Street.
There’s also an alternative pedestrian route near the Menger Hotel, stretching from North to South and providing a direct passage through the Alamo Arcade, linking Alamo Plaza with the Rivercenter Mall vicinity.
To see more construction updates, click here.
This story has been updated to make clear that even after construction is completed, vehicle traffic will no longer be permitted to drive over the historic Mission and battlefield footprint.
