SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio’s Transportation Department wants to hear from residents living near and around four forthcoming transit stations along the VIA Metropolitan Transit Authority’s planned Green Line route.
The Green Line, one of two planned advanced rapid transit (ART) corridors in the city, will run from the San Antonio International Airport to the Missions. City and VIA Metropolitan Transit officials broke ground on the project last year.
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The department is conducting a market assessment survey to explore how the ART investment could help support and connect the neighborhoods along the route, according to an SASpeakUp page.
Four portions of the ART line are identified in the survey for feedback:
- Cesar Chavez to Steves Ave: Transit Station. The area encompasses much of Southtown and part of Roosevelt Avenue past Interstate 10.
- Cypress Transit Station: The area covers a portion of the San Pedro Avenue corridor just past San Antonio College.
- North Star Transit Station: The area covers San Pedro Avenue as it crosses underneath Loop 410 near North Star Mall.
- Olmos Transit Station: The area coves a portion of San Pedro Avenue between the Olmos Park and Edison neighborhoods.
While VIA is handling the corridor’s creation, the Transportation Department is handling walkability and connectivity leading to the transit stations, said Joe Conger, a Transportation Department spokesperson.
Construction on the eight-phase route is expected to be completed by 2028, according to VIA. The entire Green Line corridor would have 25 stations, Manjairi Akalkotkar, VIA’s Major Capital Program officer, said in November.
Conger said the survey was being co-led with the city’s Economic Development Department “to align development strategies with community priorities.”
Results from the survey, which runs through the end of March, will be used to shape future policy tools and programs, he said.
Final recommendations are expected to be completed sometime in April.
While the study will not affect zoning or land use codes, it will allow exploration of the types of homes, businesses and public spaces that are possible along the route and near the transit stations.
The infrastructure possibilities explored in the survey cover much of what falls under the “half-mile radius” conversation, the distance between a station and a nearby development within the radius.
The phrase often comes up in discussions of larger transit-oriented development (TOD) projects. TOD is an urban planning practice that maximizes the growth of residential, business, retail and leisure spaces near public transportation lines.
Last November, the Transportation Department held four community meetings exploring walkability options around the four transit stations.
To access the survey, click here.