Non-Profit Buys Former Industrial Site

Texas Research & Technology Foundation acquired the 120,000-square-foot, mostly vacant Merchant’s Ice complex, a former industrial site just east of downtown San Antonio. The foundation, a nonprofit that promotes science and technology companies, acquired the 4.8-acre, eight-building complex at Houston and Cherry Streets from a partnership led by Dallas developer John Miller.

The sales price was not disclosed. An affiliate of the foundation borrowed $750,000 to buy the property. The complex is assessed at $1.5 million.

The complex, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is considered an East Side icon, though it has been vacant since the late 2000s. The new owner said it would reveal its plans for the property shortly. The eight-building complex once held the second largest refrigerated warehouse in Texas.

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