The Weston Centre site was the home to much activity in first two decades of the 20th century as a broad-reaching plan was undertaken to rebuild the city’s downtown infrastructure. A series of public works projects spawned the construction of new bridges, updated utilities and wider streets surrounding Pecan Street, which, at the time, was divided into an east and a west section. These sections were finally aligned as a single street in 1910.

At the same time, apartments, hotels and residential structures were built in the area along Soledad and Amistad. In the mid-1920s, some of these buildings were replaced by commercial development with the construction of the Robert E. Lee Hotel in 1922, the Travis Building in 1923 and the Milam Building in 1927. Expansion was also done to the existing parking garage, which then became known as the Milam Garage.

Devastating floods in 1913 and 1920 had resulted in local efforts to shore up the banks of the river, but permanent retaining walls were only completed by the Works Progress Administration from 1939 to 1941. This became the basis for the ongoing improvements that eventually resulted in San Antonio’s famous River Walk.

The Great Depression and later World War II severely dampened most downtown development activity. Very little construction took place until mid-century when the first National Bank of Commerce building (now the Crowne Plaza Hotel) was built at a cost of $5.5 million, opening its doors to the public in 1958.

The current Weston Centre site spanned two blocks (north and south) until they were rejoined in the early 1980s, as NBC Bank began to acquire land south of its original building and north of the Milam Building for a new headquarters. The structures that remained, including the Milam Garage, were demolished in 1987, when construction began on the 500,000 square foot building to be known as NBC Plaza. NBC planned to occupy 175,000 square feet of this new high-rise.

The new 30-story building and adjacent garages were completed in 1988 at a cost of $80.9 million, at the time the most expensive commercial project San Antonio had ever seen. But even as it opened its doors for the first time, it faced an uncertain future.

The devastating downturn in Texas economy in the late 1980s also took a toll on San Antonio. NBC Bank and the building landlord, Century Corp of Houston, both became insolvent and the property was taken over by one of the bank’s lenders. The building became known simply as the 112 East Pecan Street Building, but such was its appeal as a top-quality office building that it became home to some of the best organizations in the city, many of whom remain tenants today.

The 112 East Pecan name lasted for several years until, in December, 1992 the building was purchased by the Westons after a successful bid at a distressed property auction. The building soon took on the name of its new owners – Weston Centre.

Since that time, the Weston family has committed to maintaining the building’s quality and continuously improving its many amenities. This, and the Weston Centre staff’s commitment to providing unparalleled tenant service, is why Weston Centre today has become recognized as Downtown’s Best Address.