The San Antonio River, Mission Reach, The Restoration Process, September 2011 Update

Thursday, November 3, 2011

Phase 1 and 2 of the San Antonio River Mission Reach restoration project officially opened on June 25 of this year. I published an introductory post about the restoration process on Thursday, July 14. While on my  walk Friday, September 30, I took the following photos to provide a visual update on the restoration process. This walk was on the section of river between Mission Rd to the south and Concepcíon Park at Theo Ave to the north.

There is a trail bridge crossing the river about halfway between these two trailheads:

This photo was taken standing in the middle of the bridge looking south towards the Mission Rd bridge and trailhead pavilion:

Immediately to the north of the trail bridge is the large embayment restoration. The vegetation that was landscaped early in the summer is well established now providing habitat for numerous animals not the least of which are the small perching birds such as field sparrows and lesser goldfinches:

Not far north upstream from the embayment is the confluence of Concepcíon Creek with the San Antonio River. The initial restoration of this confluence has just recently begun. When it is complete, the confluence will have been returned to its more natural configuration similar to the recently restored confluence of San Pedro Creek with the river just south of Mitchell St.

The initial restoration of the confluence involves removing the concrete channel structure built in the 1950's from the creek and then replacing it with natural landscaping:

When the confluence restoration is complete a secondary greenway trail will be added from the bridge crossing to the south and extending to a point about halfway between the creek and Theo Ave.

Phase 3 of the river restoration is also underway. This phase will extend the greenway trail south of Mission Rd to Mission Espada south of Loop 410. The final photo is looking south from the Mission Rd trailhead toward the Roosevelt Ave bridge. The river bed has been widened and the flood channel banks are being prepared for landscaping:

Phase 3 is scheduled to open in 2013.