Portal San Fernando

This urban park links the cultural and urban fabric of San Antonio’s historic 1731 Main Plaza with the vibrant River Walk. The park suggests a quarry-like space, with a meandering, ramped path reminiscent of a dry creek bed. Landscape architect Rosa Finsley designed the native planting scheme and the inscriptions. The work of public artist Celia Muñoz poetically evokes the history of humans’ relationship with the river.

Retaining walls of board-formed concrete and large limestone mill blocks form terraced planting areas featuring native plants. Along the path, a series of landing spaces poetically evoke the river’s relationship to human history.  Each landing represents a specific historical era, with the unique sounds of each water feature and choice of landscape materials thematically reinforcing the art piece, itself composed of stone text panels and artifacts embedded in the pavement.