What was San Antonio like in '87? (Houston, Dallas: sales, hotels)

[infinity & beyond]

I thought it'd be fun to start a thread (with pics) of San Antonio from around twenty years ago. We'll need the help of you SA historians (wCat ). I'm imagining nothing but fields further north than Huebner and 10, and little development on the NW or NE sides. This'll be fun.

[wCat]

LOL....Thanks for thinking of me! You knew I'd find this thread, didn't you?

You're pretty much right about your description of Huebner and I-10. I remember heading out for Kerrville and it seemed like UTSA was WAY out in the country! 1604 was for the most part still a two lane road...and barely a noticible exit. That was also WAY out there.

Windsor Park Mall was alive and thriving. A lot of the growth then was inside loop 1604 and outside Loop 410. The Northeast side was taking off....Madison High School was built and that whole quadrant was beginning to be developed. Areas like Brookhollow and Thousand Oaks were just "babies" back then.

Also Olympia Estates was newly developed in Universal City....a big boon for that area that was not generally known for newer nicer homes.

Not sure, but Fiesta and Ratama Park were not built yet....and Seaworld came last.


I can't even remember when 281 was finished...mid eighties? The only way downtown for us was to drive 410 to San Pedro, or take Austin Highway to Broadway. Or there was I-35....but we avoided that for some reason.

BAMC hospital was still in the old landmark building on Fort Sam along with Beech Pavillion and other buildings.

We NEVER went downtown to the River Walk.....it was nothing like it is now.

Casa Rio was always there....and La Mansion and a few other spotty places.
I'm not even sure the River Center Mall and that new cut to the river to access that was started in 87....let alone the two Marriots. The Hilton was there from Hemisfair and they Hyatt came in along before some of the other newer hotels.

I was actually living in Dallas that year giving birth to my son! LOL...so my recollection is vague and sort of as an out of towner during those years. I have family here....and when we came to visit, there really wasn't much to do. When I officially moved back in 96 I was shocked at all the progress that had been made in 10 years!

I'm sure there are others that can remember this time period better than I can since I was living out of the area during that time.

[oldmanshirt]

Wow, I was 5 years old then but I still have memories of my grandpa taking me to Lackland to see the SR-71 Blackbird just inside the visitors entrance. Obviously there was no 151 back then, and literally nothing between Lackland and Castroville as you go west on 90. Now 90 and 1604 is one of the hottest areas in SA, but Lackland still hasn't changed much - the SR-71 is still there

[SAtoDallas]

Wow I was 14 then starting HS at Wheatley (now Brackenridge). There was no Alamodome just houses , Rivercenter Mall was still under construction anything outside 410 was "way out in the country" 1604 was callled the "death loop". Fiesta was still a full 2 weeks with outdoor concerts on a daily or almost daily basis. Hope someone has pics to post.

[smuboy86]

This is Windsor Park on 11/29/86

[wCat]

Originally Posted by smuboy86

This is Windsor Park on 11/29/86

wow.....amazing picture! And yes...it was wonderful when it was alive and bustling. I hope that the new ventures breath life back in that area.

[OzzyRules]

Huebner was definitely out in the boondocks. If you were at Huebner and I10 it didn't even feel like San Antonio. You still had a ways to go to get to San Antonio.

Huebner and Babcock was like being in the Hill Country, far from town.

[sapphire]

Garden Ridge Pottery on I-35 was a day trip! It was waaayyyyyyyyyy out there. Helotes was way out there, too, even from Culebra and 1604. 410 was under construction (duh) from Valley-Hi to past Culebra, and the traffic was pretty hairy (for San Antonio).

We had Stop n Go's and 7-Eleven's everywhere. La Feria and Solo Serve, too. lol Anything outside 410 was pretty new.

What a great thread--I'll have to do some more thinking. My oldest son was born in 1987 and every time we go thru the Medical Center I point out the floor of the hospital he was born in! (he thinks I'm semi-retarded, but I just do it now to get on his nerves)

[mexicajun]

Henry Cisneros was mayor.

Downtown was under major construction. This went on for several years in the mid to late 80's. The streets and sidewalks were being revamped. All that brickwork that you see now with people's names on those bricks lining the sidewalks, etc. was being worked on to "beautify" downtown when in fact alot of local mom and pop (non-corporate) businesses went under since the construction was a deterrent to people who all went to the outlying suburban malls(as those pictures in that other post show) to do their shopping.

Before H.E.B. Grocery went mega-big, there was also Kroger, Handy Andy and Centeno. Handy Dan was the Home Depot/Lowe's of the time.

River Center Mall wasn't built yet nor was the Marriot Hotel. Joske's was bought out by Dillard's. The Sears store, across from Baptist Hospital, was still doing business until it closed and the enchilada-red Central Library was built there. Alamo Iron Works was still in operation before the Alamodome took over their slag-lead polluted property. Hemisfair Arena was still around having heavy metal concerts for the hordes of mullet-heads and the Spurs held their games there. Across the street from Hemisfair/Convention Center were the very rough Victoria Courts Housing Projects. Downtown also was a hangout for 'The Town Freaks' and 'The Stompers' which were a small group of gangs that existed in S.A. during 1980's and pre-dated the 1990's gang epidemic.

Loop 1604 was indeed called "The Death Loop" due to the many fatal car accidents occurring on the two-lane road that was out in the boondocks. The majority of land around 1604 was considered ranchland meaning it contained nothing but oak trees, scrub brush and deer. The northern areas outside of loop 410 were populated with a few of the townhouse-type suburbs and there were hardly any of the ever-so-popular gated communities like there is now.

One was still able to drive into Fort Sam Houston from the Grayson Street entrance.

Seaworld was under construction as were the beginnings of 151 Highway.

Military Dr. on the southside was a popular cruising spot for teens on the weekends. Sonny Melendrez was hosting the teen TV show Jammin'-
YouTube - The Krayolas - Jammin' Intro

At the time there were other music scenes happening in San Antonio too-
http://www.satxpunk.com/Flyers/1986-..._1-18-1987.jpg
http://www.satxpunk.com/Flyers/1986-...f_2-7-1987.jpg
http://www.satxpunk.com/Flyers/1986-..._2-28-1987.jpg

[sapphire]

Henry Cisneros--singing "Dome, Dome, Dome, Dome, Dome, Al-a-mo-dome!" They really had to convince us to give up another penny or two of sales tax to get that thing built "for the Spurs."

The pope visited in 1987, and Henry named his son after him. The land the pope gave his Mass on is all built up now (Potranco Rd.) but back then it was all empty.