Time is of the essence, said a Westside economic development official, reacting in June 2022 to a loan agreement that paved the way to rehabilitate the historic Basila Frocks building.
The loan of almost $1 million, from the Westside Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ), filled the gap between what the nonprofit economic development group Prosper West and development partner DreamOn Group had invested in the project and its $3.7 million total cost.
Nearly a year later, the project is closer than ever to a start date, said Julissa Carielo, co-founder and partner of DreamOn Group. The last hurdle is securing permanent financing.
The redevelopment to turn the former dressmaking workshop at 500 N. Zarzamora St. into a mixed-use complex could begin in another month, she said. At an open house in December, the developer displayed design renderings by San Antonio architecture firm Overland Partners.
“We’re very close to financing and the designs are almost done,” Carielo said. “So we’re hoping to start construction within the next 30 to 45 days. It’s looking really good and the renderings are amazing.”
Prosper West already is advertising the building and its amenities to prospective office tenants. It is scheduled to open in January.
“These projects are so difficult to do — there’s a reason this building has sat there as long as it has without reinvestment,” said Ramiro Gonzales, CEO of Prosper West.
Built in 1929 by Nicholas and Marie Basila, the Basila Frocks factory is the most visible and notable structure in a vibrant corridor, according to a 2016 report by the city’s Office of Historic Preservation, and represents San Antonio’s confluence of cultural identities.
But its disuse and lack of maintenance over the years have left it vulnerable to decay and vandalism. Advocates for development on the West Side have long sought to give it a makeover.
“That’s why the community fought so hard when five or six years ago [when] a developer bought it and tried to tear it down to put up a dollar store,” Gonzales said.
“But at the time, the dirt was worth more than the building.”
Determining the actual value of the property for the purpose of financing has been challenging, Gonzales said.
A recent appraisal came back at half the value of an earlier appraisal, but still more than where tax records put the appraised value, which is just under $400,000.
TIRZ funding enabled the developer to determine whether the project was even feasible but did not cover the entire redevelopment cost, he said.
“They had to do all the work to find out what does this actually need to be?” Gonzales said. “What are the costs going to be? And are we where we need to be in terms of the numbers to still make it work?”
Another challenge is the sheer scope of the project. “The facility is really just a big cement box,” Gonzales said. “It has no running systems [such as] plumbing, electrical, HVAC, nothing.”
DreamOn Group has worked to develop plans that would make the project eligible for state historic tax credits. They also secured new market tax credits, a program of the U.S. Department of the Treasury that provides investors with a federal tax credit to invest in economically distressed communities.
Those tax credits help form the basis of a package the developer is taking to lenders, Gonzales said.
When the building is completed, Prosper West will be one of the first tenants. Plans call for the remainder of the building to have a mix of uses, including meeting and co-working space, a coffee shop or other retail.
A parcel east of the old factory, recently acquired for $40,000, will provide what Gonzales expects to be about 15 parking spaces.
He looks forward to seeing the planned outdoor space to be used for public meetings and gatherings and to seeing the project get underway in the coming months.
“Something new could have been built in its place, but with that, you’ll lose all of that character, that history,” he said.
Meanwhile, Prosper West is planning a ribbon-cutting event for May 9 to debut the first completed home remodel as part of its Casa Bella program.
The program’s goal is to rehabilitate Westside homes for affordable resale and improve the quality of the housing stock in the area.
“We’re looking for buyers now, but that home, we were able to then leverage and to help tell the story and get about $1 million from [the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development] for about 20 more homes here on the West Side,” Gonzales said.
“So it’s a big win for us.”
This article has been updated to remove an incorrect reference to Overland Partners. Overland Partners is a financial supporter of the San Antonio Report. For a full list of business members, click here.
