SAN ANTONIO – The Tobin Hills community is being proactive as it tries to stop rising issues on the St. Mary's strip. Community members are working with city leaders to make it safer for drivers and people walking through the revitalized entertainment zone.
New restaurants, bars, and concert venues are bringing crowds back to the St. Mary's strip north of downtown.
"Plus, there's another five businesses that are slotted to be open or under construction right now that are going to have food and nightlife options," said Blayne Tucker, owner of The Mix Bar.
The growth is great news for Tucker and other area business owners, but with expansion, come growing pains.
"The growth's been substantial, especially when it comes to pedestrian traffic, bike traffic, we're seeing a lot of activity during the weekend," Tucker said.
Traffic is one of the concerns Tucker brought up in a constructive meeting with the Tobin Hills Business Association, Neighborhood Association, District 1 City Councilman Roberto Trevino, and San Antonio Police Chief William McManus.
"We see a lot of speeding that goes up and down St. Mary's," Tucker said. "Inevitably there are a lot of jaywalkers so we're looking at certain improvements in infrastructure like crosswalks, traffic signals, and so forth," Tucker said.
The main fear among business owners is that speeding cars will end up hitting pedestrians.
"There are plans on the horizon that are related to Vision Zero, which has everything to do with pedestrian safety. Narrowing the streets, putting bike lanes in, more parking in, so that the streets aren't conducive to high speed," McManus said.
There are also short term solutions Trevino is working on, like adding more speed limit signs, and lighting.
"That's something we can ask our TCI department to take a look at on the traffic that we have here, and the lighting concerns," Trevino said.
St. Mary's is one of the streets being considered for upgrades as part of the 2017 bond project.
Community members also mentioned overflow parking in their neighborhoods, leading to noise and trash. Trevino said he plans to include that in his conversation with multiple city departments.
Some of the community members asked McManus about crime in the area.
"What I see as far as the crime stats is not alarming. The numbers are not that great, but again as the population grows here in the evening when the restaurants and clubs are operating, we need to pay attention to that," McManus said.