VIA plans Bus Rapid Transit station for shoping center Bexar County is destroying

While Bexar County has been plotting the destruction of hundreds of jobs and dozens of businesses at Northwest Center, VIA Metropolitan Transit has been going forward with plans to build a Bus Rapid Transit stop at the shopping center.

Supporters of Bus Rapid Transit claim that such stations inspire nearby development such as shopping centers. In this case the shopping center exists but Bexar County has decided to destroy it in the name of flood control without considering the impact on jobs and the community and without examining flood water retention systems that would allow the center to continue to exist.

County could boost economy while preventing destruction of jobs, businesses and buildings of Northwest Center

The county plans to tear down Northwest Center on Fredericksburg Road in order to put in a retention pond to control flooding.  Hundreds of jobs will be lost and the quality of life of thousands of residents along Fredericksburg Road will be affected negatively.

Flood control officials apparently don't know about the work of San Antonio based Aquabank Inc.   This company's innovative rainwater and gray water storage solutions would save Northwest Center, the jobs and prevent flooding. 

Below the asphalt or concrete of commercial parking lots is base material.   The base material supports the surface and stabilizes it.  Aquabank Inc uses the voids in the base material to store rainwater and gray water. 

If Aquabank's technology was applied to the center the area under the parking lots could be transformed into large water storage tanks.   All the flood waters that the county rightly worries about could be stored and more probably for less than the cost of condemning the center.

I only hope that the officials responsible for this will become educated to this alternative and change course.  Call your county commissioner and Judge Wolff without delay.


County says businesses need to be out by September 1st