Double Branch update: waterfront dining and a new town center on San Antonio’s doorstep

Waterfront dining inspiration.

A waterfront dinner spot, neighborhood shopping and new places to gather could become part of a very different daily routine near San Antonio. Double Branch, the 965-acre development at the southeast corner of I-75 and State Road 52, is being planned as a destination that combines those amenities with housing and employment.

We introduced the project’s two retail districts in our May report on The Shops and The Boardwalk at Double Branch. This follow-up looks at what the broader vision could mean for San Antonio-area households as development continues along the interstate corridor.

An evening out, with room to linger

The Boardwalk is the most distinctive piece of the plan: waterfront buildings intended for restaurants, specialty retail and entertainment, supported by outdoor patios, public plazas and green space. It is the kind of setting designed to keep people around after the shopping is finished.

For San Antonio-area residents, the opportunity is a new gathering place nearby—a setting for meeting friends, taking visiting family out to eat or pairing dinner with time outdoors. Those are possibilities the design creates, rather than an announced schedule of events or openings.

The adjoining Shops district is aimed at the more everyday side of life, including anchor retail, fitness and services. Local media have associated Sprouts Farmers Market, Salt Shack, EōS Fitness and H&H Bagels with the project as prospective businesses. Firm tenant announcements and opening dates will be the next important details for residents planning to use them.

Connections matter as much as the storefronts

The developer describes a walkable community with roughly 3,500 multifamily and lifestyle residences and more than 200 acres of parks and trails. Its retail plans also anticipate connections through Setter Palm Road to nearby neighborhoods, including Mirada, for cars, bicycles and golf carts.

How those routes come together will shape the experience. A nearby restaurant is more useful when residents have a convenient way to reach it, and a trail network can help turn separate residential and commercial parcels into a connected neighborhood.

Industrial development at 75 Logistics forms part of the early buildout. Over time, the larger plan also calls for office space, healthcare and life-science uses, hotels, and approximately 500,000 square feet of shopping, dining and entertainment. That combination could bring both new services and new reasons for people to work close to where they live.

A regional project with a local impact

Double Branch’s interstate location gives it a wider audience than its future residents alone. Visitors and workers could support restaurants and services throughout the surrounding area, while additional activity will also make road access and safe local connections important measures of success.

The development will arrive in phases. For now, watch for business-specific announcements, the progress of residential and retail buildings, and the opening of usable connections between them. For San Antonio, the prospect is an exciting one: an expanded choice of everyday amenities and a waterfront destination within the surrounding community, alongside the town’s established places to shop and gather.