KAI Texas Completes San Antonio Urban Revitalization Project

Design/build firm KAI Texas, partnering with the San Antonio Housing Authority and developer McCormack Baron Salazar, completed the first phase of a new mixed-income residential development, known as East Meadows, that's breathing life back into the East Side neighborhood of San Antonio.

Backed by a $29.7 million Choice Neighborhood grant from HUD and a $24.6 million Promise Neighborhood grant from the U.S. Department of Education, the completed $41.7 million development was officially unveiled in October 2016 as part of a renewal effort targeting the East Side community.

KAI Texas provided architecture and interior design, engineering and project management on the development, which spans 10 acres and includes 215 mixed-income apartments furnished with major appliances and other market-rate amenities. The development is also environmentally responsive, following Build San Antonio Green Level 2, Enterprise Green Communities and LEED design criteria.

KAI Texas designed each two- and three-story apartment building with a combination of one-, two-, three- and four-bedroom units in a mix of San Antonio-specific residential styles that blend into the neighboring communities, said KAI Texas President and COO Darren James. The community does not resemble traditional market-rate apartment communities or institutional apartments and feels like a cohesive collection of residential-scaled buildings, he added. The community also includes two mixed-use buildings with a Bibliotech, or digital library, and commercial space on the first floor.

"The San Antonio Housing Authority and developer McCormack Baron Salazar wanted us to design housing that celebrated the heritage of the historical East Side, as well as include elements of what make San Antonio architecture unique," James said. "There is a mix of Spanish, Colonial, Craftsman and Federalist styles that emulate the historical character of the surrounding homes and greater San Antonio."

East Meadows is five minutes from Fort Sam Houston and 10 minutes from downtown San Antonio. It is also close to historic Phyllis Wheatley Middle School and St. Phillips College. KAI Texas is currently designing a new community health clinic, the Dr. Robert L. M. Hilliard Clinic, which is within walking distance of the new East Meadows neighborhood.