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Three generations of ex-students of the School of Architecture at The University of Texas at Austin have been instrumental in creating one of the most significant economic boons to the state of Texas--the San Antonio Riverwalk. Host to more than 7 million visitors annually, San Antonio has built tourism into a $3 billion industry. Tourism accounts for almost 60,000 jobs and contributes more than $40 million in direct local tax revenue to the city. The primary engine that drives this powerful industry is the Riverwalk--the top tourist attraction and the strongest influence on visitors deciding to visit San Antonio, according to independent research sponsored by the San Antonio Convention and Visitors' Bureau.
The charming and lively Riverwalk would not exist were it not for the energy and creativity of a series of UT architects who conceived and nurtured this extraordinary urban accomplishment over the past seven decades. In the 1920s the flood-prone San Antonio River was lined with deteriorating buildings that abutted the river with their backsides. Its banks were littered and unkempt and its water was often polluted. Most downtown inhabitants considered the river a nuisance. It was no surprise, therefore, when engineers hired by the city recommended that certain channels of the river be filled with concrete, including the Horseshoe Bend area, now known as the Riverwalk.
In June 1929 a 27-year-old UT Architecture graduate named Robert H. Hugman outlined an alternate vision for the area, which combined romance and nostalgia with promotional good sense and anticipated the beautiful and evocative Riverwalk as we know it today. After almost 10 years of lobbying, speaking to civic groups, writing newspaper articles, and calling on community business leaders, Hugman's proposal was adopted and he was hired as the architect. In 1939 the city inaugurated his $300,000 river-beautification project, financed by a city bond issue and a Work Projects Administration (WPA) grant. A beautiful parkway was created, including over 11,000 new trees and shrubs,
17,000 feet of walkways and 31 stairs--all designed and built with exquisite care and craftsmanship. A pedestrian thoroughfare, accessible from all principle downtown streets, flanked the banks of the river, which was also deepened to accommodate small craft. The construction included fountains, bridges, and an outdoor theater.
However, it wasn't until the 1960s that the design originally envisioned by Hugman reached its full potential. In preparation for San Antonio's HemisFair '68, another UT Architecture graduate, Cyrus Wagner, led the design effort, heading an American Institute of Architecture-sponsored team that created an updated vision for the Riverwalk, adding a lively concentration of shops, clubs, and cafes. Wagner's team garnered a national Progressive Architecture Design award for excellence in community architecture and established a national presence for the emerging Riverwalk.
A third generation of UT architects is currently involved in enhancing and expanding the Riverwalk. A design team led by Ted Flato, David Lake, John Blood, and Elizabeth Danze recently won a competition to design the Riverwalk-oriented International Center. Flato and Lake are also designing a new hotel in another part of the river. Overland Partners, a young firm founded by three UT Architecture graduates--Rick Archer, Tim Blonkvist, and Madison Smith--is at work linking the historic Aztec Theatre to the Riverwalk.
The list of UT-trained architects making a substantial contribution to the world-renowned San Antonio Riverwalk has grown from a single voice in the 1920s to dozens of architects over the past three decades. Their collective work has beautified San Antonio's downtown area, bolstered its tourist economy to nationally recognized levels, and showcased the history and culture of one of America's unique cities.
By Lawrence W. Speck, UT Austin School of Architecture
Photographs courtesy of Sinclair Black
- Sources:
Landmarks of Texas Architecture, Lawrence W. Speck; photos by Richard Payne, Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press, 1986.
A Dream Come True: Robert Hugman and San Antonio's River Walk, Vernon G. Zunker, San Antonio, Texas: V. G. Zunker, 1983.
"San Antonio River," The New Handbook of Texas, Austin, Texas: Texas State Historical Association, 1996.
- Links:
- UT Austin:
- The Handbook of Texas Online:
http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online
- Other:
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