The Project Organic Master Plan was commissioned by the Harlingen Economic Development Corporation (HEDC) as a comprehensive framework for future development within a City of Harlingen Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ). This long-term plan introduces a more dynamic and forward-thinking approach to planning and land development than has traditionally been applied in Harlingen.
As shown in the site plan below, our current work with Port San Antonio is focused on the transformation of three major streets into multi-modal streets that support the collaborative environments important to innovation districts.
Winner | 2025 AIA-SA Historic Award
In the bygone era of the silent screen, Hot Wells Resort drew socially prominent guests. From 1901 to 1923, the hot sulfur springs resort attracted celebrities, in part due to its co-location with Star Films, just across the River. Movie stars, political figures, and wealthy patrons gathered to “take the waters,” attend concerts and dances, hobnob on the grounds, and place wagers on the local ostrich races (yes, ostriches).
Brackenridge Park is an official State Antiquities Landmark and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Unofficially – Brackenridge is the “Central Park” of San Antonio, a green urban oasis in the cultural heart of the city center, with a hundred-year-plus legacy
Civic Park at Hemisfair aspires to be San Antonio’s new “front porch” and will provide unique programmatic elements and offer new additions to the City’s repertoire of public space. Lush gardens, groves, and water features weave through a celebratory promenade, urban marketplace, and vast urban lawn. Development sites surrounding Civic Park have been land-banked to work symbiotically in the creation of a distinctive public-private partnership development model that will increase land values and fund maintenance of the park in perpetuity.
The Project Organic Master Plan was commissioned by the Harlingen Economic Development Corporation (HEDC) as a comprehensive framework for future development within a City of Harlingen Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ). This long-term plan introduces a more dynamic and forward-thinking approach to planning and land development than has traditionally been applied in Harlingen.
Alamo worked with Economic Planning Systems to plan and prove the feasibility of a high-intensity multi-modal transportation district centered on the Robert Thompson Transit Center on the eastern edge of downtown. The study analyzed regional and micro-market conditions to project capture rates over a multi-year build-out.
As shown in the site plan below, our current work with Port San Antonio is focused on the transformation of three major streets into multi-modal streets that support the collaborative environments important to innovation districts.
MidTown Brackenridge is the cultural heart of San Antonio — not just because of its marquee destinations such as Brackenridge Park, the Pearl, and the Witte Museum — but because of its connections to some of the best urban neighborhoods in San Antonio. The MidTown Brackenridge TIRZ Master Plan represented a dynamic approach to planning.
“Great Cities Have Great Downtowns” is a core tenet of the Downtown Strategic Framework Plan, the independent study Alamo Architects co-led in 2012 as an outgrowth of the SA2020 community initiative. The study focused municipal efforts on a future-looking urban core, anticipating the long-term benefits to the greater metropolitan area.
In developing a master plan for the first satellite campus for top-tier Texas A&M, we hoped to foster a strong sense of primary local identity, cultural pride, and vibrant campus life. Since inception in 2010, a unique sense of place has taken shape at the school, reinforced by a cohesive architectural expression. The fast-growing student body now takes part in a lively campus culture that is unique to TAMU-San Antonio, with a campus plan rooted in local tradition.
Alamo Architects crafted a new Campus Master Plan for Northwest Vista College in 2005, bringing an authentically responsive approach to the expanded campus – where landscape, buildings, and the spaces in between work together in a “messy vitality.”
The Alazan Courts Redevelopment Master Plan is founded on an extensive community engagement process designed to rebuild public trust. Our thorough process prioritized active listening, allowing the plan design to evolve out the conversation between the design team and the community.
San Antonio Humane Society’s campus was dedicated in 2002, immediately becoming a hub for local animal advocacy – a warm, welcoming place for pets and their new adoptive families. The Adoption Facility also accommodated public outreach and education, offering flexible space for an active and growing volunteer corps. Siting the campus at a high-traffic intersection within the City’s affluent northwest quadrant leveraged prominent highway visibility – greatly benefiting the Humane Society mission.
Over recent decades, ACS has developed strong community awareness around animal welfare. Successfully guiding local animal welfare policy, ACS has prioritized adoption and compassionate care for abandoned pets in the metro area. We are proud to help advance the next phases of growth for ACS, meeting the future needs of our vulnerable animal population through spay/neuter and adoption services.
As shown in the site plan below, our current work with Port San Antonio is focused on the transformation of three major streets into multi-modal streets that support the collaborative environments important to innovation districts.
In San Antonio’s semiarid part of the world, cycles of rainfall and deep drought are a fact of life. Still, in a city proud of our green lawns and lush golf courses, water conservation has traditionally been a tough sell. San Antonio Botanical Garden’s WaterSaver Community promotes low-water-use landscaping to local homeowners in a relatable neighborhood setting.
Winner | 2025 AIA-SA Historic Award
In the bygone era of the silent screen, Hot Wells Resort drew socially prominent guests. From 1901 to 1923, the hot sulfur springs resort attracted celebrities, in part due to its co-location with Star Films, just across the River. Movie stars, political figures, and wealthy patrons gathered to “take the waters,” attend concerts and dances, hobnob on the grounds, and place wagers on the local ostrich races (yes, ostriches).
Founded by Alamo Architects staff, ActivateSA is a 501(c)(3) grassroots tactical planning initiative and advocacy organization. Composed of architects, landscape architects, conservationists, civil engineers, civic leaders, transportation planners, and others, volunteers work collectively to implement a well-connected regional transportation infrastructure. Since founding in 2019, we work for change through advocacy, consensus-building, and technical design.
Brackenridge Park is an official State Antiquities Landmark and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Unofficially – Brackenridge is the “Central Park” of San Antonio, a green urban oasis in the cultural heart of the city center, with a hundred-year-plus legacy
Civic Park at Hemisfair aspires to be San Antonio’s new “front porch” and will provide unique programmatic elements and offer new additions to the City’s repertoire of public space. Lush gardens, groves, and water features weave through a celebratory promenade, urban marketplace, and vast urban lawn. Development sites surrounding Civic Park have been land-banked to work symbiotically in the creation of a distinctive public-private partnership development model that will increase land values and fund maintenance of the park in perpetuity.
Civic Park at Hemisfair aspires to be San Antonio’s new “front porch” and will provide unique programmatic elements and offer new additions to the City’s repertoire of public space. Lush gardens, groves, and water features weave through a celebratory promenade, urban marketplace, and vast urban lawn. Development sites surrounding Civic Park have been land-banked to work symbiotically in the creation of a distinctive public-private partnership development model that will increase land values and fund maintenance of the park in perpetuity.
The Shops at La Cantera blends the visual heritage of San Antonio and the Texas Hill Country with the fashion edge necessary to support a setting for high-end retailers, incorporating lush gardens of native landscaping, detailed handcrafting and artisanal materials alongside crisply detailed steel and cut stone.
The Rim Commons is a favorite “before and after” placemaking case study for a few reasons: it drew on our decades of retail experience; we found a planning solution to a development problem; and it showcases the economic potential of good placemaking.
Irby Hightower, FAIA, is a founding principal. His urban design practice is focused on planning that connects high-density, pedestrian-focused districts to their surrounding communities. His leadership on the steering committee for the 13-mile expansion of the San Antonio River Walk, a multi-agency undertaking of broad vision and dedication over two decades, is a prime example. Irby led Alamo’s planning team on the creation of the urban design frameworks of both the San Antonio Center City Strategic Development Plan and the San Pedro Creek Culture Park and wrote the related CoSA design guidelines, RIO-7. For the Hemisfair Park Area Redevelopment Corporation’s (HPARC) the team wrote the urban design manuals for Civic and Tower Parks. Each is a foundational roadmap for robust, economically resilient downtown development. San Antonio’s rich history, culture, and unique urban form have strengthened Irby’s appreciation for solutions derived from context, and the corollary belief that every part of a city deserves good design.
Trent Tunks, RA, AICP, is an urban planner committed to creating more connected, inclusive, and resilient communities. His work blends innovative, economically sustainable, and environmentally responsible planning strategies with a deep understanding of how people experience place. Trent’s background spans urban planning, streetscape design, adaptive reuse, and multi-family housing projects, where he consistently emphasizes context-sensitive and community-driven solutions. A strong believer in the power of engagement, he prioritizes collaboration with residents and stakeholders to ensure each project reflects the values and needs of the people it serves. As a planner, architect, and wheelchair user, Trent brings a unique perspective that informs his advocacy for equitable, accessible, and vibrant public environments—an outlook he advances through leadership roles such as his work with the San Antonio Housing Trust Sustainability and Universal Design Committee.
Jim Bailey, AIA, is a senior principal. He has embraced urban activism by jump-starting ActivateSA.org, a local coalition dedicated to complete streets. Jim’s engagement with City policy also includes developing the San Antonio Housing Policy Framework, informed by experiences working with inner city communities on both new construction and retrofits of existing, aging city properties. Aligned with our work in multifamily housing, we believe every community needs and deserves excellent, affordable places to live.
Billy Lawrence, AIA, is a founding principal. He has led the firm’s practice in retail, mixed use development, and placemaking. His retail clients such as Simon Properties, The Rouse Company, Affinius Capital, General Growth Properties, Brookfield Properties, Hines, and Neiman Marcus represent the premier tier of retail developers nationwide. His work in national retail includes The Shops at La Cantera in San Antonio, Texas, The RIM Commons Park, and new Neiman Marcus stores in Austin and Fort Worth, Texas.
Jennifer Frantz Melde, PLA, is a professionally licensed landscape architect with broad experience in community master plans, parks and trail planning, and commercial and residential development. Leveraging her passion for sustainability and problem solving ability, she works with clients to celebrate the unique natural beauty of the Central and South Texas environment. With over 20 years’ experience, she is on a lifelong path to expand her expertise in sustainable design, renewable materials, and native plants.