It is the largest urban ecosystem restoration ever, and on Monday, another section of the Mission Reach along the San Antoniio River opened to the public.
Bexar County has opened up another mile stretch of the Mission Reach River Walk Trail, making it now three miles starting just south of downtown.
The county had been wanting to do this for years, but the federal funding just never materialized. So the county has put up $245 million for this project.
Along with providing recreational opportunities along the river, County Judge Nelson Wolff said this project is already having an economic impact.
New development along the river already has been going up, and exisiting neighborhoods are seeing their home values increase.
But Wolff said that's all secondary.
"First and foremost, it's an ecological restoration," he said, noting the Mission Reach project's effects on trees, plants, birds and "putting life back in the river."
This fall, another mile stretch will be open. And sometime late next year, the rest of the project will be completed. When it's all done, Mission Reach will stretch all the way down to Mission Espada, which is just past Loop 410.
