San Antonio Independent School District’s new headquarters, to be located next to the San Pedro Creek Culture Park and Fox Tech High School, received final approval Wednesday from the Historic and Design Review Commission.
Commission members voted unanimously to approve the design of the proposed three-story, 140,000-square-foot headquarters, which when completed will bring employees from 30 departments into one location.
HDRC members gave conceptual approval to the headquarter’s design in December.
On Wednesday, city staff again recommended approval, provided that SAISD make some minor modifications to signage and comply with development standards for landscaping along San Pedro Creek.
Construction is slated to begin 30 days after a planned August school board vote related to the construction, district spokeswoman Leslie Price said.
In February 2018, San Antonio ISD trustees voted to sell the parcels its current headquarters occupies – at 620 Matagorda St., 211 Lavaca St., 215 Lavaca St., and 141 Lavaca St. – to Broadway SA Investors GP LLC, the real estate unit of Silver Ventures, which developed the Pearl.
The sale agreement stipulated that SAISD could remain at its Southtown location for 28 months from the closing date with an annual lease payment of $100. That gave SAISD a tight timeline to design, build, and move into the new headquarters. The district planned to move into the new administrative offices in August 2020.
With the design approved, construction is expected to take 17 months, putting the new move-in date several months past August 2020. The district will remain in its current buildings for the duration of construction, Price said.
It was not immediately known what effect, if any, SAISD’s remaining in Southtown would have on its agreement with the property’s new owners.
