A Guide to the San Antonio River Walk Commission. David Straus Papers, 1960-1994

Biographical Note

David Straus was a prominent and active member of the San Antonio River Walk Commission of San Antonio. The Commission, a board appointed by the City Council of San Antonio, was formed in May 1962 and dissolved in November 1992. Other members of the Commission included Jimmy Gause, Walter Mathis, and Arthur “Hap” Veltman.

The job of the Commission was to review development plans along the River Walk (Paseo Del Rio) and La Villita. Some people feared that if there was no effort to regulate development the River Walk could begin to resemble the French Quarter in New Orleans. The Commission worked with the Tourist Attractions Committee of the Chamber of Commerce and the local chapter of the American Institute of Architects to create a master plan for the development of the River Walk area. The provisions of the master plan called for a pedestrian link between Alamo Plaza, La Villita and Main Plaza. The commission also helped to implement improvements to the River Walk for HemisFair in 1968, including expansion to the convention center and a system of lights along the River Walk.

The Commission also worked to protect the River Walk from overdevelopment. The designs of buildings as well as the atmosphere of restaurants and other businesses along the River Walk were scrutinized. Development plans were sometimes stopped or major adjustments made due to the objections of the Commission.

The responsibilities of the Commission, as well as those of the Historic Review Board and the Fine Arts Commission, were assumed by a newly created Historic and Design Review Commission.

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Scope and Content Note

The San Antonio River Walk Commission. David Straus Papers, 1960-1994, document the work and projects of the San Antonio River Walk Commission through minutes, correspondence, ordinances and reports. The material in the Administrative series includes a complete set of meeting minutes (1962-1992) that provide excellent information on the types of issues that were brought before the Commission and a large number of press clippings with stories about the River Walk. The Development series contains information about individual projects considered by the commission including the Paseo Del Rio Project Master Plan. Various other groups shared jurisdiction or interests with the Commission; information regarding these groups can be found in the Organizations series.

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Restrictions

Access Restrictions

This collection is housed at UTSA's Main Campus and must be accessed via the John Peace Library Special Collections reading room. To request access, please use the Collections Request Form.

Usage Restrictions

Permission to publish from the San Antonio River Walk Commission. David Straus Papers, 1960-1994 must be obtained from University of Texas at San Antonio Libraries Special Collections.

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], San Antonio River Walk Commission. David Straus Papers, 1960-1994, MS 47, University of Texas at San Antonio Libraries Special Collections.

Acquisition Information

All the materials in this collection were donated by David Straus in 1994 (Acc. 1995-02).

Processing Information

Processed by Eric Hartmann, Processing Archivist, March 1998.

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Arrangement

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