Weaving Threads of Culture into an Urban Oasis: Southtown Aldea

Development Team Collaborators

Along with a strong collective vision for the project, the assembled development team already has a successful track record together. Owner Oxbow’s Bill Shown, along with Omar Gonzales (formerly of Hemisfair Park Area Redevelopment Corporation, or HPARC), Seattle-based landscape architects GGN and Alamo Architects combine years of successful shared project experience at Hemisfair. Alamo Architects is working alongside associate architect Don B. McDonald, AIA and landscape architects GGN to bring richness and variation to the architectural expression and bespoke environment.

Design Draws from Southtown’s Eclectic Makeup.

Known as an arts district, Southtown is situated south of downtown San Antonio, taking in King William and Lavaca (San Antonio’s two oldest neighborhoods). Settled successively by Spanish colonists, and later waves of Mexican, German, Polish, Italian and Southern emigres, there is a well-worn patina to the area – persistently casual, even with new tech-founder wealth. An arts scene anchored by The Contemporary at Blue Star and the Pace Foundation’s Ruby City attracts gallery-goers. Its thriving restaurant community offers everything from Tex-Mex plates to Michelin-starred, chef-driven fare. Groups of cyclists, young families, dog walkers and coffee shop patrons all find their way to Southtown, especially on weekends and First Fridays. Front porches of historic homes hold space for spontaneity. “Nothing better than a porch sit,” according to some – including Bill Shown, emphasizing a central concept of Southtown Aldea; luxury living lightened with front-porch ease.

“Southtown is already someplace people want to live, for its walkable streets and relaxed pace,” offers founding principal Irby Hightower, FAIA. “Our plan amplifies this idea of a pedestrian-oriented neighborhood by turning it inward, with three architecturally varied buildings centered around a series of paseos, courtyards, and a small plaza. Street level cafes will spill out onto sidewalks, evoking old-city centers.” Aldea is a poetic Spanish word for “village,” which speaks to the ambiance of the small-scale streets of Lavaca. The small-scale historic area is made up of varied late-19^th century one-story stone and stucco houses with deep porches, bordered by mercantile buildings. The project weaves together threads of a rich cultural and architectural vernacular to draw out an authentic sense of place; familiar and new at the same time.

Planning: History, Renewal, and the Urban Promenade.

Southtown Aldea is bounded by three historic streets: South Alamo, Lavaca, and Matagorda Streets, and the project respects the history and architecture of each. The fourth boundary is César Chávez Boulevard, a wide arterial carved out of legacy blocks in the late 1960s to carry Hemisfair-era traffic to the fairgrounds. At Southtown Aldea (and at our multifamily residential project, 100 Labor, also on César Chávez), we have designed buildings with out-facing commercial spaces. In this proactive device of incremental urbanism, we hope to encourage more pedestrian-focused activity all along César Chávez in the future.

“The plan of the public spaces came first, with the buildings shaped to fit the public spaces,” notes Irby Hightower. “Residential community amenities add another level of unique, ‘only in San Antonio’ places that build off the paseo, courtyards, and plaza.” The project brings to life prime real estate that had been underutilized as a parking lot. Interestingly, its location joins an evolving “urban promenade,” – imagined in this case as the leisurely stroll from the Torch of Friendship sculpture, through Civic Park and Yanaguana Park, across César Chávez Boulevard and into the destination neighborhoods of King William and Lavaca. New civic and private development has reinforced this promenade, and it directly connects Southtown Aldea to the lively energy of downtown San Antonio.

Designed for a Wordly Look, Feel and Experience.

Southtown Aldea residences (1-, 2-, and 3-bedroom units and four penthouse suites, a total of 265 units), have views out into the tree-lined streets of nearby Lavaca, or to the bright skyline of downtown San Antonio. Austin designer Leslie Fossler brings her award-winning contemporary sensibility to well-appointed interiors. A private amenities suite is centrally located in the Chávez Street building, with an indoor/outdoor second-story pool, lounge, and sundeck. Adding to the sense of location and ambiance, several ground floor restaurants and cafés will join a strong local culinary presence. Parking is in a central garage serving the public and the three mixed-use buildings.

Southtown Aldea is a currently a work in progress, in final design and cost estimation phase. Construction is expected to begin in late 2025, with completion in 2028.