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Researchers at the University of Texas at San Antonio have discovered potential space along some of the city’s busiest thoroughfares to accommodate housing for up to 600,000 new residents by 2050.
Their initiative has pinpointed over 7,000 acres of vacant land and underutilized parking spaces near planned transit corridors that could be transformed into new housing developments.
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Ian Caine, an architecture professor at UT San Antonio who spearheaded the project, explained that a blend of new developments and infill projects around existing structures could introduce new housing options at VIA’s proposed transit hubs while honoring the local heritage.
“By developing on vacant and underused land along these routes, we could address San Antonio’s entire housing deficit,” Caine stated.
The initiative, titled Vacancy to Vitality, identified unused parcels and parking areas along transit corridors that are not limited by issues such as flood risks, ownership conflicts, or size constraints. It proposed policies and designs to foster development without displacing current residents or historical businesses and buildings.
Researchers examined land within a half-mile radius of seven of VIA’s proposed rapid transit corridors, uncovering over 2,700 acres of vacant land and 4,700 acres of underutilized parking spaces that could potentially be transformed into housing.
Some of the concepts—like converting motels into workforce housing, adding multifamily units to strip malls, or transforming malls into expansive mixed-use communities—are not novel, Caine noted. His aim was to contribute data and fresh ideas to the ongoing housing dialogue in San Antonio.
This project combined research with visual renderings created by students from the UT San Antonio architecture program, identifying specific locations and methods to integrate these ideas into San Antonio’s landscape. Caine emphasized that this was not a definitive proposal for city growth, but rather a starting point for discussions with potential developers.
“This is a thought experiment about how San Antonio might evolve over the next 25 years,” Caine remarked during a panel discussion on Tuesday.
The project concentrated on VIA’s proposed advanced rapid transit corridors. Two of these lines are currently under development: the Green Line, which broke ground earlier this year, and the Silver Line, which is expected to begin construction in 2027. The remaining five lines included in the research are still in the proposal stage.
Caine emphasized that the research also examined alternative transportation methods, including autonomous vehicles and public transit systems.
“We’re envisioning a future with fewer personal gas-powered cars and large parking lots,” he said. “Our priority is to focus on people rather than vehicles.”
This would represent a significant shift. Although the driverless car company Waymo plans to launch services in San Antonio in 2026, over 80% of the city’s workforce commuted by car in 2024, according to U.S. Census Bureau data, totaling more than 600,000 individuals.
Despite this high volume of car users, Caine pointed out that many of San Antonio’s parking spaces remain underutilized. In the U.S., parking areas are vacant about 75% of the time, leading to environmental consequences, such as heat retention and obstructing rain absorption into the ground.
There are approximately 877,000 parking spaces in the study area surrounding the VIA transit corridors, which equates to around six parking spots for every 1,000 gross square feet of commercial space—approximately double the national average. Researchers estimated that two-thirds of these spaces could be repurposed for development, amounting to more than 4,000 acres.
Utilizing these underused spaces for mixed-use developments can be more environmentally sustainable, lower infrastructure costs, and reduce travel times, especially if situated near public transit.
Caine emphasized the importance of developing these areas without displacing businesses or residents within the neighborhoods. A component of the project involved mapping residents’ vulnerability to displacement and gentrification.
Caine mentioned that private developers would need to spearhead the construction efforts. The potential housing capacity on the land would depend on the type of housing that developers choose to construct.
City policymakers have been concentrating on transit-oriented development (TOD) and approved regulations last year aimed at reducing urban sprawl while promoting denser development near public transportation.
The Vacancy to Vitality initiative is currently on display at the San Antonio Central Library until early January.
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Tagged: Green Line, housing, Ian Caine, infill development, san antonio, San Antonio Central Library, San Antonio development, san antonio housing, San Antonio vacant land, top story, transit-oriented development, ut san antonio, UTSA, UTSA Architecture, UTSA School of Architecture, Vacancy to Vitality, VIA, VIA Rapid Transit, Waymo, wc 500-750 Jasper Kenzo Sundeen
Jasper Kenzo Sundeen covers business for the San Antonio Report. Previously, he reported on local governments, labor, and economics for the Yakima Herald-Republic in Central Washington. He was born and raised in the area.
