Bulldozers, smoke and 17 hours of firefighting tell the story of yet another fire at Lone Star Brewery. What’s next for this SA landmark?
SAN ANTONIO — Bulldozers ripped into the walls of the old Lone Star Brewery as San Antonio firefighters battled heavy smoke for more than 17 hours in the latest fire to strike the historic south-side landmark.
The call came in shortly after 10:30 p.m. Wednesday, when crews arrived to find smoke trapped inside the walls of the massive structure. By 9 a.m. Thursday, Battalion Chief John Castillo and his team arrived to relieve those on scene.
Because of the brewery’s deteriorating condition, firefighters couldn’t go inside. The building, Castillo said, is riddled with holes in the second and third floors.
“There’s so many holes inside… it’s been deemed a dangerous structure,” Castillo said.
Fire crews set up camp on the exterior, but made little progress. Eventually, Public Works crews were called in with bulldozers to tear down sections of the walls so firefighters could reach the smoke from the outside.
“(2005) was the first time I dealt with this kind of cork fire inside the stucco walls,” Castillo recalled. “Here we are, 20 years later, dealing with the same issue, only on the other side of the structure.”
Castillo explained that the building’s construction – stucco walls lined with cork insulation – makes it especially difficult to put out fires.
This marks the 10th fire at the brewery since 2021. Witnesses told officials they spotted four mini bikes inside the property before flames were reported. The vacant site has become a magnet for trespassers, with evidence of vandalism, drug use and previous burn patches found inside.
“There’s so much problems in there, being overrun by the vagrants and hypodermic needles,” Castillo said.
‘Why did it get to this point?’
The Lone Star Brewery opened in 1933 as the Sabinas Brewing Company. For more than six decades, it was a centerpiece on the south side—home of the Buckhorn and a gathering place for barbecues, social events and family celebrations.
But in 1998, the gates closed.
Since then, neighbors have watched the structure sit empty, deteriorating and repeatedly catching fire.
“It’s a piece of history that’s part of our culture, part of our neighborhood,” said neighbor Alexis Omana Cruz, who stopped to watch firefighters at the scene. “A lot of memories, a lot… I remember my parents saying they used to come out here for BBQs and social events. I hope we bring something like that back.”
“Why did it get to this point? Why hasn’t it been dealt with?” Cruz added. “When is this gonna end?”
In 2021, developers announced a major mixed-use project at the site – including shops, apartments and public spaces — drawing comparisons to the transformation of the Pearl Brewery. The first phase was slated for 2021 to 2025, with developers requesting $24 million in incentives and Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ) reimbursements, including $11.5 million in the initial phase.
But those plans appear stalled. Experts report that the property was put up for sale in 2022, raising doubts about whether the ambitious project will move forward.
But since then, there has been no movement.
District 3 Councilwoman Phyllis Viagran says reviving Lone Star may require creating a TIRZ, a financing tool that allows money from rising property values to be reinvested directly back into the same area.
“That is a great opportunity to tell a story and the history. It’s got as much history as the Pearl does,” Viagran said. “I think the key… is TIRZ. That would need to be a developer-initiated TIRZ or city-initiated TIRZ where we get that reinvestment back into that zone.”
“What I would love to see is some mixed use and some housing—housing at different levels from the deeply affordable to market rate,” she added. “Brooks has done a great job on a mix like that.”
“There’s always people looking,” Viagran said. “I just don’t know who’s ready to take the plunge.”
The Office of Historic Preservation (OHP) says any redevelopment plans would require city approval. The agency has worked with the property owner in the past, approving demolitions of certain non-historic buildings, but confirmed there have been no recent proposals submitted.
“Any redevelopment plans for the Lone Star Brewery would need city approval as part of the permitting process,” the office said in a statement. “There have been no recent proposals submitted, and we are unaware of any active redevelopment efforts.”
While Lone Star Brewery is located in District 5, Councilwoman Teri Castillo’s office has not responded to requests for comment. KENS 5 also reached out via Instagram to the developers who pitched plans in 2021, but did not hear back as of Thursday evening.
For now, the future of the property remains uncertain. Neighbors say they hope the site can be brought back to life before more of it goes up in flames.
“I hope something good comes out of this,” Cruz said. “It brought a lot of families together… I hope we bring something like that back.”