Perez Street Houses




The two historic houses at 215 and 219 Perez Street are rare surviving remnants of Barrio Laredito, a once-thriving Westside neighborhood largely erased during the urban renewal efforts of the 1970s. These buildings embody early Texas architectural traditions and construction methods. The two-story house at 219 Perez is built of native limestone, while the smaller structure at 215 Perez is a jacal—a rare and distinctive form of vernacular architecture made with mesquite branches and caliche. The Perez Street Jacal is one of only a few authentic examples remaining in San Antonio.
Owned by University Health System for several decades, by 2001, the Conservation Society of San Antonio had rehabilitated the limestone house and invested over $30,000 to construct a temporary roof to protect the fragile jacal. In 2004, both buildings were listed on Preservation Texas’ Most Endangered Places list. Despite these efforts, the jacal remained vulnerable and deteriorated significantly over the following years.
In 2017, the jacal’s aging “temporary” roof—then 16 years old—collapsed, leaving the structure in a critical state. University Health responded by salvaging materials and stabilizing what remained of the historic building. In 2019, the limestone house received new historically appropriate wood windows and doors after being boarded up for many years. Today, both properties are designated City of San Antonio Historic Landmarks, a testament to their cultural and architectural significance.
LOCATION: 225 Perez Street, San Antonio (Bexar County)
DESIGNATION: Local landmarks
STATUS: Saved!
OWNER: University Health
RESOURCE TYPE: Residences
YEAR LISTED: 2004