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    Via Finishes Work to Rehabilitate Ellis Alley Structures

    Oct. 1, 2014
    In 1999 Via opened the Ellis Alley Park-and-Ride and in 2002 the agency opened a new information center that was fashioned out of two of the six buildings that were on the site.
    Related To: VIA Metropolitan Transit
    The completion of the Ellis Alley enclave was funded by VIA and the city of San Antonio TIRZ program along with assistance from the San Antonio Conservation Society.
    The completion of the Ellis Alley enclave was funded by VIA and the city of San Antonio TIRZ program along with assistance from the San Antonio Conservation Society.

    Via Metropolitan Transit has completed the rehabilitation of the remaining three historic structures in the Ellis Alley enclave on the near East Side of San Antonio.

    In 1999 Via opened the Ellis Alley Park-and-Ride and in 2002 the agency opened a new information center that was fashioned out of two of the six buildings that were on the site. A third structure was converted into a private dental office, and the remaining three buildings were mothballed and stabilized until they could be developed for re-use. Now Via has completed renovations on the remaining structures and has prepared them for lease to other entities.

    “This has been a truly amazing project,” said Jeffrey Arndt, President/CEO of Via. “Ellis Alley represents a piece of San Antonio's history. And Via, as a good corporate citizen, has made every effort to preserve that history while still making sure these buildings serve useful purposes in the community.”

    The work on the two-story Beacon Light Lodge building at 220 Chestnut St., was finished first and San Antonio for Growth on the Eastside (SAGE) has moved into the building. Via will now work with SAGE to secure tenants for the remaining lease space in Ellis Alley.

    The area of Ellis Alley is just east of downtown San Antonio, and it was first settled by freedmen and other African-Americans in the years following the Civil War. Ellis Alley served as the seed from which the East Side grew. Via’s information center in the enclave was formed by linking together two of the houses and refurbishing them to preserve their historic nature.

    The completion of the Ellis Alley enclave was funded by Via and the city of San Antonio TIRZ program along with assistance from the San Antonio Conservation Society. The renovation work was done by Ford, Powell & Carson Architects with Mainstreet Architects Inc., Baron-Long Construction Inc., and TLI & Environmental Services Inc.