Univision site could turn into riverfront housing

Photo: Mike Fisher Photo: Mike Fisher Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Univision site could turn into riverfront housing 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

What is now home to a Spanish-language television station could soon become a home for San Antonio residents.

A development company is under contract to buy the Univision site downtown, with plans for a multifamily project there, said Phil Crane, a principal at Providence Commercial Real Estate Services, the firm representing Univision in the deal. Citing a confidentiality agreement with the developer, Crane did not offer specifics, including the identity of the development company or the number of units proposed. He did mention that the deal is recent and that he expects that it could close by the summer.

It's expected that the developer will have to demolish the existing buildings on the 4.3-acre property to build the riverfront units. The potential cost of the deal was not disclosed, but the parcels that make up the property at South St. Mary's Street and East César E. Chávez Blvd. are assessed at about $8.2 million, according to the Bexar Appraisal District.

If the deal is signed, Univision is expected to move out soon after everything is finalized, Crane said. It's unclear where the television station would move if a deal is closed, but city records show that construction permits were filed for Univision offices along Network Boulevard near Interstate 10 and Prue Road.

Univision had no comment about the deal or its future plans about moving from the downtown site.

The property has been identified as a key site for multifamily and mixed-use development, said Ben Brewer, president of the Downtown Alliance.

“It's a transitional site between the core area of downtown and the King William neighborhood to the south,” Brewer said. “So residential begins to make really good sense there.”

There currently are 3,343 existing apartments and nearly 600 existing condos downtown, according to data from the Downtown Alliance. Add to that single-family housing in the downtown neighborhoods, and there are roughly 7,000 residential housing units. There is an effort to double that figure by 2020.

Last year, it was reported that Houston-based developer The Hannover Co. was in negotiations to buy the site for a luxury residential project, but a deal was never reached. Some local commercial real estate experts speculate that the current development company under contract also could be from Houston.