Bold colors and playscapes have turned a dark and gritty highway underpass downtown into space the community hopes will draw people together.
The Pass at Market Square opened recently under Interstate 35 between Dolorosa and Commerce streets near Historic Market Square at 514 W. Commerce St.
The 8,800-square-foot space, owned by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), is the first recreational area created in a pedestrian zone below an elevated freeway in San Antonio.
The project was planned by the city’s Department of Arts and Culture working with Center City Development and Operations through a local agreement with TxDOT.
The project was supported by a $100,000 grant from Claritin’s Clarity Parks Project and design services were provided by the Project for Public Spaces. The 80|20 Foundation gave a matching $100,000 grant.
The concept of turning underutilized space created by overpasses has been catching on for the last 10 years or so.
New York City built the world’s first elevated highway between 1929 and 1937, according to a Wired magazine article about creative uses of the space.
It was an idea that spread across the country as a way to reduce traffic congestion. But it often divided or destroyed neighborhoods, and almost always created underused space in the tightly developed urban core.
Brightly painted and described as an urban gathering space designed for relaxation and play, The Pass includes new lighting, a shaded basketball court, ping pong tables, large picnic tables, wrap-around seating areas, two sets of swinging chairs and long benches.
The area was previously known as the Gateway Underpass, a boundary line separating City Council Districts 1 and 5, between downtown’s vibrant dining and retail spaces and the city’s West Side.
It went unused except during Fiesta, when vendors sold elotes, raspas and floral crowns, said a city spokeswoman.
Yvette Ramirez, president of the Farmers Market Tenant Association, said The Pass represented a “pass into the future,” and the growing presence of the University of Texas at San Antonio’s downtown campus.
“A lot of people would think the highway is a dividing line, but now that The Pass is underneath it, it’s actually a connection to District 1 and UTSA. It’s a gateway to bring us together,” Ramirez said.
Councilwoman Teri Castillo (D5) said the new park shows that San Antonio can transform unconventional spaces into recreational areas that bring people together.
“This park gives us an opportunity to reconnect our communities to shoot some hoops, rally over some ping pong, and spend quality time together under a structure that was once historically used to separate us,” Castillo said in a statement provided by the city.
The Pass is open daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Market Square’s 24-hour security service will monitor the area and enforce the hours. The area is adjacent to UTSA parking lots and also will be patrolled by the university’s security officers.
Events to be held at The Pass at Market Square will highlight a specific topic tied to a region in Mexico. During Labor Day weekend, Sept. 2-4, it will host a “show and tell” program about the community’s first responders.
More information about events at The Pass can be found on the Facebook page for Market Square.
In October, two artists will paint a mural on the columns of the underpass. The mural will reflect the history of the area going back to the Chili Queens, who fed hungry locals through the 1940s.
The Pass is San Antonio’s only recreational area located at an underpass, said the city spokeswoman, adding that the area could be expanded throughout the rest of the underpass sometime in the future.
A number of San Antonio’s highway underpasses already feature art created by local artists. Here’s where to find them:
Ballroom Luminoso, 100-198 Rochambeau St.
Canopy, 729 Fulton Ave.
Neon Drive, 401-405 Nolan St.
Under the Over Bridge, 100 Ninth St. bridge
Westside Gateway Bridges: Guadalupe Street, Guadalupe, Buena Vista, and Commerce streets
Windows to Our Heritage: Mission Road
Windows to Our Heritage: Presa Street
Windows to Our Heritage: Roosevelt Avenue
Windows to Our Heritage: Steves Avenue
Where I End and You Begin, Mission Parkway at SE Military Rd.
Light Channels, East Commerce Street and I-37
Winter, Pecan, Mountain Lion; Fall, Mesquite, Deer; Spring, Yucca, Heron; Summer, Nopal and Tuna, Black Bear, SE Loop 410 at Villamain Rd.
River Walk (29° 26′ 00″ N and 98° 29′ 07″ W), 541 Brooklyn Ave. Bridge
