Quarry Market Shopping Center

E. Basse Rd & Hwy 281
San Antonio, TX

Submitted by: Maureen Meredith

A giant retail complex whose elements are so spread out that shoppers might as well drive between them.

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Why It Doesn't Work

This shopping center was built where a stone quarry once operated. It is a sprawling sea of parking spaces with stores flung about on the edges.The stores are so spread out that you have to drive to practically each and every one of them. With a little more thought and creativity, the developers/builders/architects could have designed a wonderful "town center" where shoppers could amble around the square(s), sip coffee on patios, and chat by the water fountain on park benches. But alas, the actual users of the shopping center weren't taken into consideration. Even though I live just a half-mile from this shopping center, I refuse to shop there because it's so user-unfriendly. Every time I see it, I lament the lost opportunities. I hope to live in San Antonio long enough to see it bulldozed one day so a new, improved development can replace it.

What Puts Quarry Market Shopping Center in the Hall of Shame?

There are high-density apartment complexes near it with some very high-end single-family residences. It's accessible by foot from these developments, but I've never seen people walking there while I've been around it. It is also accessible by bus, and obviously, by car. Car seems to be the dominate mode of transportation to it and around it.

This development is massive and intimidating. The pedestrian feels overwhelmed by the massive parking lot and great expanse of stores which feels like they're miles apart. If a person walked there from a nearby apartment, they'd actually NEED a car to get around the center to shop!

Because the shopping center is so poorly designed, shopping by car seems to be the only realistic use. The only space I've seen people just "hanging out" is the coffee shop in the Borders Book Store.

The place is so pedestrian-unfriendly and there is absolutely no "third space" provided other than the bookstore cafe. You don't see people socializing in the outside areas because there is nothing but parking spaces. You only see people as they walk from their cars to the stores, and out again back to their cars.

History & Background

This place makes minor attempts to reference the site's history as a cement quarry founded in 1880.

Contact Info:

AlamoQuarry.com

User Comments:

> Add your own comment about Quarry Market Shopping Center

06/19/03 Timothy Baisdon said:: Agree that the Quarry Market is a shameful missed opportunity for the same reasons given by Maureen. Incredibly, it is a very popular place, probably because of its central location, the megaplex movie theater and the stylish neighborhood around it. I too hope to live to see the site redeveloped, only I think many of the buildings, especially the original quarry structures can be spared and incorporated into a more dense development. The pad sites near highway 281 frontage could be wiped out and additional housing, offices and other uses might be brought in on top of some of the parking, creating "streets" and plazas in between, possibly with grade level parking underneath or carefully designed structured parking. This site deserves better than it got.
08/22/03 Paree Roper said:: I visited San Antonio last year after a 13-year hiatus. On the way into town from the airport, I spotted the Quarry Market from the freeway. I thought, hmm, this would be interesting to check out. I was expecting a well-designed place where I could browse, relax, and just hang out. Instead, I got another strip mall. The mix of stores and businesses is excellent, but the setting is quite disappointing.

As a one-time Texan, I know what it is like to deal with a brutal summer sun. This place made no provisions for this basic fact of life at that latitude. Also, driving from one store to another is just plain wasteful. Connections could have been made for pedestrians-there is plenty of room on the site to do so. Why it was not done is beyond me. San Antonio has such a great example of good design in the Riverwalk. Too bad the designers of the Quarry didn't take their cues from it.

Skip the Quarry. Head downtown to the Riverwalk, sit under an umbrella, sip some of the best margaritas on planet Earth, and have fun in a delightful space designed for human beings.
10/14/03 Paul hernandez said:: I think the Quarry could have been better without the parking lots. A more pedestrian-friendly environment would have been more appreciated. It's still an awesome development, the preservation of the quarry deserves merit, so get over it. I love the Quarry. Compared to other cities that are mostly sterile, places not unique such as Atlanta, Dallas and Phoenix.
05/10/05 Allie S said:: Everyone complains about the shopping at the Quarry? Where else are you going to shop, at one of the horrible malls in town? I think you should be happy that this place looks nice and isn't an eyesore like most of the places in this town. There are neat stores for kids and adults as well as fun places to eat like Stonewerks. If you want another Target or Wal-mart, just go a couple blocks and they are everywhere!
11/24/07 Raffael Verissimo said:: I am right away stunned. The place edges the dreadful for not saying chaotic. It unaffectedly spoils the urban landscape.
05/17/09 D. Laske said:: Here's what's crazy: In the context of San Antonio, the Quarry Market is considered one of the best shopping destinations in the city. You have to see San Antonio for that to make sense. So many people think San Antonio is so great because all they bother to see is the Alamo and the Riverwalk. Try living here! It is like a concentration of all that is wrong with Texas-- architecture, urban planning, environment, and I'm sorry, but education.