[SAguy]

By James McCandless
Reporter, San Antonio Business Journal

Apr 12, 2023

Developer Harris Bay is planning to start construction on the downtown Artista Hotel boutique project in July, according to a state filing. When finished, the eight-story, 71,000-square-foot River Walk-adjacent building will offer 121 rooms at 151 East Travis St.

The project has been in some form of development since 2019, when the firm purchased the land for about $2.1 million. The Bexar County Appraisal District's 2023 assessed value of the property is about $3.7 million.

Along with the eight stories, another level is planned to sit along the River Walk. When the project received its certificate of appropriateness from the Historic and Design Review Commission (HDRC) this past November, most of the proposed hotel's design choices and materials were approved. But when city staff realized that the river-level section of the project would alter public property and that there hadn't been proper coordination with the Center City Development and Operations department to resolve the issue.

In the November HDRC hearing, Kris Feldmann, a CREO design principal whose firm is heading the building's design, said that any portions of the River Walk's stone wall lining that is altered as part of construction would be incorporated into the project. The development team will have to return to HDRC at some point to receive further approval for that section of the hotel's design.

Speaking to the Business Journal in November, Jake Harris, the managing partner at Harris Bay, said that the hotel is drawing inspiration from boutique hotels in Austin and Mexico to differentiate it from the average hotel experience. He said that the team is leaning heavily on visuals to create a space that tourists will want to make part of their experience as opposed to just thinking about the hotel as a place to sleep.

"With that Artista name, we've been curating art — custom art from unique makers," he said. "We've gone on trips to Mexico and Peru and other places to feature artists that are making this stuff by hand. This is not a cookie cutter thing. When I say [the hotel is] different, what we're thinking is, 'How do we show that difference and highlight San Antonio's roots in Spanish colonial empire from 300 years ago?'"

Construction is scheduled to be completed by the beginning of 2025. Harris did not respond to a recent request for comment by publication time.