ORD-2025-01 Design Manual Effective 2025.1.21

A APPENDIX

Design Guidelines

D. Step 3. With even more time, the neighborhood is getting more complete. Thorpe Lane will function better as the neighborhood center as more buildings begin to shape both sides of the street. Not all properties will change. Some businesses and apartment buildings will remain. As the new network of streets connect, the new east-west connections will take some of the traffic pressure off of Thorpe Lane. With the proximity to Texas State University, it will be a place attractive to students and faculty who prefer to walk and bike and use transit, whether they own a car or not. Many businesses will also be supported by the spill-over effect of various sporting events that take place on campus just to the western edge of Midtown. E. Future Prospects. Midtown eventually becomes a complete neighborhood. Thorpe Lane, up and down its length, offers a place for shops, banks, offices, and upper floor residences. It will still have its parking but will also support transit usage. This western area has a lot of potential with its proximity to Downtown and the Texas State campus and it is aging, ready to be redeveloped since many of the buildings have outlived their design lifespan. The other areas of Midtown, east of I-35 will likely redevelop in a similar manner. The shopping area along

Hwy 80 is still thriving and it may take longer to see changes there. The area east of I-35 and on both sides of Aquarena Springs Drive will take the longest since many of the apartment complexes here are fairly new and occupied. The middle area east of I-35 has potential because it has easy access on and off of I-35, more undeveloped parcels than in the other areas of Midtown, and a drainage problem that should really be solved with a neighborhood-wide solution that also creates park space.

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Amended: January 21, 2025 San Marcos Design Manual