SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Officials overseeing the $450 million facelift of the Alamo want to triple the size of the historic plaza in downtown San Antonio, close streets, raze up to four buildings and move a 60-foot monument.
Details of the plan were released Thursday by the city, the nonprofit Alamo Endowment and the General Land Office, which manages the Texas shrine.
The ground in some places would be lowered more than a foot to the level at the time of the 1836 battle with Mexican forces. Plans to move the monument, known as the Cenotaph, some 500 feet away has drawn particular criticism from preservationists.
Officials say they want to create a sense of “reverence and respect” on the site.
Public hearings will be held later this month and the city council could give preliminary approval in the fall.