A Charred Life 
The Second Battle for San Antonio
Two miles of expressway is having a harder time moving through the Alamo City than Santa Anna did.
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"In the final analysis, the man-made facilities, both within the park and the areas adjacent, must be considered replaceable. What is not replaceable is the delicate balance between the natural environment and the imposition of man-made facilities...Once changed, these open spaces, whether actively or passively used, cannot be legislated back into existence. At what price can we no longer afford to maintain our natural environment?"
Hopefully, someone out there is listening.
Pros vs. Cons
Expressways Are Relics
"IT HAS BEEN SAID THAT nothing is more powerful than an idea whose time has come. By the same token there is nothing more ludicrous than an idea whose time has passed."
"The San Antonio North Expressway is founded on the idea that roads equal transportation. When the North Expressway was being planned, 20-25 years ago, that idea had some merit. But viewed in today's urban context we see that freeways, rather than providing efficient transportation, make travel more difficult, longer, frustrating, and hazardous. And in the bargain dependence on the private auto serves to make our cities uglier, the air more foul, and is a major drain on natural resources."
"In the case of the North Expressway all the shortcomings and ills of a dedication to the expressway/auto idea are further coupled with destruction of an irreplaceable natural resource—San Antonio's major urban park and open space system. It is time to recognize the North Expressway, and the idea from which it springs are relics of the past. In so doing we can get on with the task of providing a viable system of urban transportation which conserves both the environment and our city's unique atmosphere of living."
Tony Athens, Sierra Club President
Stop the Highwaymen
"NOW IS THE TIME TO inform the Congress, the Administration and the citizens of the United States that ripping through landscapes with concrete and asphalt will not improve on nature nor will it solve the nationwide transportation dilemma."
"The proposal to "terminate the Federal aid relationship" of the expressway through park lands "notwithstanding any other provisions of Federal law or any court decisions to the contrary" is clearly a blatant attempt to circumvent laws designed to protect all of our people and their environment. It is a law and order issue. The precedent-setting legislation would open the flood gates for similar efforts all over the country by highwaymen who are trying to wriggle out of the detailed requirements of Federal law."
"Law and order? I'm for it, but the highwaymen never were and never will be unless we "keep those cards and letters comin'," to persons, particularly legislators, who will be willing to join us in overcoming the most powerful and dangerous lobby in the country—the diligent destroyers, the highwaymen."
Wanda Ford, Anti-Expressway Organizer
Our Streets Are Overloaded
"THE BASIC NORTH FREEWAY ISSUE is whether or not local citizens can build—with their own money—a needed public facility they voted for, 2 to I. Most San Antonians believe that the environmental issue has been distorted by opponents, some sincere and some of whom use the park issue as a cover.
One must give weight to all of the factors. Considerations include:
(1) Citizens need and want the expressway to avoid thousands of hours being lost in traffic, to reduce accidents and air pollution. (103,000 people signed a petition in 1971 urging completion.)
(2) Alternatives have been studied and effects on parkland have been minimized.
(3) The city has provided 1,000 acres of additional parkland which the freeway will make accessible.
(4) The Federal Highway Administrator approved the route years before the federal provisions now used to entrap it.
(5) $11,000,000 in right-of-way and construction has been expended. It sits rotting while traffic stalls.
It just doesn't make sense to do anything but complete it now. "
Robert D. Deegan, Highway Engineer
Complete It Now
"SAN ANTONIO IS EXPANDING AND developing to the north. As the new developments progress and are occupied by more and more people, then there are more vehicle trips to school, recreation, shopping and work."
"The northeast section of San Antonio is served by I.H. 35 and the northwest section by I.H. 10, leaving the north-central section served only by a corridor street system of six streets. They are already overloaded. The use of Loop I.H. 410 as a distribution link between I.H. 10 and I.H. 35 has caused overloading conditions on this Loop. Another factor contributing to the congestion developing on the street corridor and Loop 410 is the increase in the number of trips to and from International Airport, which is about in the center of the City's north-central area."
"The opening of the North Expressway will provide a direct, fast route through the center of the area. It will aid in the reduction of traffic on Loop 410 and will provide needed relief for the over-crowded traffic conditions on San Pedro Avenue, Broadway, and other streets of the central corridor. The North Expressway will also provide a route for express bus mass transit service from the airport and Loop 410 shopping centers to the Central Business District."
Frank A. Bennack, Jr., Publisher, San Antonio Light
Gruen Report: the Expressway's Impact
AFTER ITS STUDY OF THE route insisted upon by the city and its impact on the environment, the Gruen Report makes these conclusions:
The scenic upper portion of the Alpine Road will be partially closed due to expressway construction.
The noise level generated by the expressway in the Outdoor Theater area is anticipated to range from 50 to 55 decibels. A noise-attenuating wall is proposed along the perimeter of the expressway, but this will be inadequate for truck-generated noises. Passing trucks and autos seen and felt below may be extremely disruptive to the function of the theater. In addition, air and dust pollution can be anticipated [here] and in the Sunken Garden area.
The expressway will separate the existing zoo area from its future expansion site to the west. The main lanes of the expressway will be visible by zoo visitors primarily from the southwest and northeast corners. Visibility and noise impact will come from the northbound off-ramp to Hildebrand Avenue and the newly relocated and elevated Hildebrand Avenue viaduct over the expressway.
The Incarnate Word school will be bisected, separating the high school from the rest of the facilities. The expressway will displace a substantial number of large, mature pecan trees and live oaks clustered in the area.
Expressway elevation will be approximately 10 to 18 feet above the backyards of several homes in the City of Olmos Park. Noise impact can be expected in this area.
The expressway will fragment and isolate various parts of Olmos Basin Park. The 12 to 35-foot high embankment will visually separate the eastern half of the park from the western half. Nearly 200 acres of this park will be needed for right-of-way and the three borrow sites, which average 9.6 feet in depth.
The scale and size of the six-lane elevated expressway will conflict directly with the serene setting of the relatively small and fragile park. The daily flow of 70,000 to 100,000 cars and trucks will be visible from nearly everywhere in the basin. The visual and sensual character will no longer be the same.
The noise and air-pollution impact, the visibility of the passing vehicles and trucks, the blocking of afternoon sunlight on the creek—all will contribute to the downgrading of one of the most significant and valued assets in Olmos Park, the picnic-creek area.
During the construction phase of the expressway there is a strong possibility that the fragile and sensitive nature of the creek might be entirely destroyed when bulldozers start to operate in the area.
The expressway will be approximately at grade with Contour Drive in the picnic area. A major noise impact to the adjacent residential area can be anticipated. The viaduct, 35 feet high over the creek, will destroy the western slope which is fully covered with large, mature live oak trees.
The massive viaduct proposed to cross over the top of Olmos Dam will creates a major visual and noise impact on the surrounding area. Major embankments will be required on both sides of the dam, with the expressway elevation rising about 15 feet higher than the ground or adjacent homes.
The total wooded acres to be displaced will be approximately 29 acres.
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