Scobey Project - VIA Metropolitan Transit

SCOBEY COMPLEX REDEVELOPMENT PROJECT

The Scobey Complex Redevelopment Project fulfills VIA’s plans to create the city’s first Transit-Oriented Community, which is designed to create a walkable, mixed-use space near high-quality, frequent transit service. Centro Plaza at VIA Villa is home to over 1 million trips per year and represents VIA’s ongoing investment and contributions to mobility on the near-West Side.

The adjacent Scobey Complex currently offers no benefit to the residents, businesses or services in the area. VIA plans to rehabilitate and repurpose the structures to create a community asset from a dangerous eyesore. Redevelopment of the Scobey Complex would create new employment opportunities, increase access to housing and improve equitable access to opportunities for VIA riders and area residents.

Transit Oriented Communities (TOCs) reduce transportation costs, which lower the cost of living for residents, while providing improved amenities for transit customers and enhancing local business and employment opportunities. The project completes plans for the VIA Villa complex, which include Centro Plaza, The Grand, and the Joint Law Enforcement Center (JLEC) buildings.

ABOUT THE PLAN

♦ Represents VIA’s ongoing investment and contributions to mobility on the near-West Side, transforming the five-building storage complex of approximately 285,000 square feet that sits on about 2.5 acres.

♦ Plans for the Scobey Complex include a mixed-use development that would facilitate and promote the use of public transportation.

♦ Redevelopment of the Scobey Complex would create new employment opportunities, increase access to housing and improve equitable access to opportunity for VIA riders and area residents.

♦ Walking, bicycling and high-frequency transit options available at the adjacent Centro Plaza can improve access to opportunities and enhance quality of life.

♦ The Scobey Complex is currently vacant and deteriorating, providing no benefit to the West Side community or VIA riders. Without action, this historic structure will become unrepairable and unusable.

VISION AND TIMELINE

VIA’s vision for Scobey is informed by the agency’s Transit Oriented Communities policy, adopted by the VIA Board of Trustees in 2018.

TOC policy
key points

Partnerships are critical. While VIA will play an instrumental role in the initial steps of TOC development but will rely on partnerships for execution.

Developers will take the risk of constructing TOC projects. VIA will set expectations for outcomes and financial terms while reducing risk for its partners, who will assume the liability of development.

The Scobey Complex is part of the VIA Villa footprint on the historic near-West Side, which includes VIA headquarters, Centro Plaza mobility hub, and VIA’s Joint Law Enforcement Center. The site is being developed as a transit-adjacent community designed to better serve VIA customers and connect area neighborhoods and businesses through affordable, reliable public transportation and services.

2010-20
Ongoing public outreach and engagement on VIA Villa developments, including Centro Plaza.

2012
VIA headquarters moves into the former IGNR Train Depot, now The Grand.

2015
Centro Plaza opens and becomes VIA’s busiest transit hub with 1.1 million trips each year.

2017
VIA purchases Scobey, a row complex of vacant industrial buildings, for $5.2 million as part of the VIA Villa vision and plan.

2018
Work on Scobey redevelopment planning begins.

2021
West Side-based developer DreamOn selected as project partner.

2021-23
Non-binding Term Sheet development.

2023
Due to pandemic-related market conditions, VIA and DreamOn end partnership

ABOUT

History

The Scobey property consists of three industrial warehouse buildings and three additions constructed between 1913 and 1935. The arrival of the railroad to San Antonio in the late 19th century made the city an important regional center for trade, and the Scobey complex reflects the early-20th century commercial growth of San Antonio.

The Scobey property is historically significant because of its association with the rapid growth of the commercial and industrial sector of San Antonio in the early-20th century. The complex represents the shift from a largely agrarian society, which relied on local systems of production, to an increasingly urbanized and industrialized society.

During the Great Depression, the ability to store large quantities of locally grown fresh food and produce was instrumental in stabilizing food prices, and the Scobey Company continued to be one of the most significant warehouse and distribution companies in San Antonio throughout the mid- to late-20th century. The property reflects the evolution and expansion of the warehousing industry in San Antonio during a pivotal time period in the commercial development of the city.

The Future of Scobey

VIA remains committed to converting the Scobey Complex into a vibrant asset for the community. The agency continues to engage with the public to gather input on the facility.

VIA also remains open to concepts that may be proposed by potential partners for redeveloping the property.

Area Projects

The Scobey project is one of several capital improvement developments and revitalization efforts identified, adjacent to or part of various area plans, including the UTSA Downtown Campus Plan, Cattleman Square/Frio Street Plan, Westside Creek Restoration, Downtown Master Plan, SA Tomorrow Plan, and others that also helped to inform the VIA Villa Vision and Scobey plan.

The Scobey complex is on the western edge of the area that’s the focus of redevelopment plans and is separated from the greater West Side by an active train corridor, the Haven for Hope campus and the Bexar County Adult Detention Center.

Image above: Artist Renderings

IMAGES

DIMMABLE LED LIGHTS

Ambient lighting on board conserves energy
by reducing output levels.

COMMUNITY MEETINGS

SEPTEMBER 9, 2023

First Scobey Complex Project Meeting Draws Civic Groups and Neighbors to Discuss Plans

VIA Metropolitan Transit and its development partner DreamOn hosted a community-input meeting on Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023, at the Maestro Entrepreneur Center to seek input from West Side neighborhoods, civic groups and others interested in informing the plans to redevelop the Scobey Complex.

More than 50 people participated in the event, which was a facilitated roundtable workshop that provided a space for groups to have discussions about the elements they would like to see in the predevelopment project. They provided input on the significance of the Scobey property, priorities around proposed housing, retail and commercial elements, and other services and concepts they’d like integrated into the project.

The session included short presentations from VIA President/CEO Jeffrey C. Arndt, VIA’s Scobey project manager, Veronica Escalera-Ibarra and DreamOn President Julissa Carielo.

Groups that attended included:

♦ Avenida Guadalupe
♦ David Crockett Academy
♦ Esperanza Peace & Justice Center
♦ Gardendale Neighborhood
♦ Haven for Hope
♦ Henry Ford Academy

♦ Historic Westside Residents
♦ Inner City Development
♦ La Familia Cortez
♦ Prospect Hill Neighborhood
♦ Prosper West
♦ Pueblo Over Profit

♦ San Antonio Cultural Arts
♦ West Commerce Business Alliance
♦ West End Hope in Action
♦ Westside Preservation Alliance
♦ Westside Education & Training Center

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