SAN ANTONIO — Work on one of the biggest components of the Alamo's massive $550 million makeover gets underway at the start of October.
Officials with the Alamo Trust said construction of its years-in-the-planning visitor center and museum – which is being touted as a "world-class facility" – will begin Oct. 1, in a public ceremony expected to be attended by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, Alamo Trust Executive Director Kate Rogers, San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg and other dignitaries. The Alamo Trust says the museum "will deepen public understanding of the Alamo" through galleries, a 4-D theater and focused curatorial efforts.
The 100,000-square-foot museum marks a repurposing of the historic Crockett and Woolworth buildings. It's expected to be completed sometime in 2027; officials had previously hoped for a 2025 debut.
PHOTOS: Renderings for the upcoming Alamo Museum and Visitor Center
The Alamo Museum and Visitor Center will further contribute to a changing downtown landscape, which includes the construction of Civic Park down the street and a new Missions baseball stadium expected to be built about a mile away. The Alamo Trust says the facility will create thousands of new jobs.
Construction on the museum was able to move forward after the Texas General Land Office and the city announced a deal last year with the owner of an Alamo-area bar who had rejected numerous land purchase offers. City Council had previously approved the use of eminent domain to seize the property, escalating the stakes of the impasse.
The Alamo Collections Center opened in spring 2023, fulfilling another objective for the multipronged Alamo Plan, the overview for the Texas landmark's revitalization.
Construction on the Alamo museum comes as a San Antonio organization considers potential sites for another major museum, one focused on the city's history of Mexican American civil rights efforts and figures.