via San Antonio Report's The Trailist column: On San Antonio’s South Side, I recently saw an example of how a developer can create new housing while leaving space for nature and creating benefits for the broader community.
Last month, New Braunfels-based SouthStar Communities announced it had completed the first section of its planned Madla Greenway as part of its VIDA development just north of Texas A&M-San Antonio. In this hub of Southside growth centered on the university, VIDA plans to build approximately 1,500 housing units — apartments, townhomes, duplexes and single-family homes.
The first phase of this development involved setting aside a 35-acre patch of woods with a seasonal creek. Weaving through the trees is a 1-mile trail loop that connects to the VIDA neighborhood and University Way, the access road that leads directly into campus.
Gretchen Howell, SouthStar’s senior vice president of community development, said the trails are meant to let people experience “the natural beauty of the area” while also creating “regional connectivity.” SouthStar is the main developer active around Texas A&M-San Antonio, having in 2015 acquired the nearby Mission del Lago community, a subdivision of more than 2,300 homes and 1,000 apartments only about two miles from VIDA. Mission del Lago includes a trail connection to the City of San Antonio’s Medina River Greenway and the Mission Reach, a trail network that now spans 17 miles.
“The Howard Peak Greenway south of the city is largely a secret to so many. … It’s beautiful, and it’s in an undeveloped area,” Howell said. The VIDA project’s plans call for additional trail construction over the next 12 years, with plans to link that neighborhood to the greenway as well.
Read the full article: https://sanantonioreport.org/the-trailist-vida-development-on-south-side-includes-publicly-accessible-trail/
