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24-story historic property along San Antonio's River Walk is set to undergo a hospital-to-residential conversion. Houston-based InnJoy Hospitality plans to transform the former Nix Medical Center at 414 Navarro Street into apartments, with construction costs estimated at $10 million. The project, expected to start in January and last about a year, will bring new life to the vacant building, which has been idle for four years.

    Built in 1930 as a full-service hospital, the Nix Medical Center was once a cornerstone of San Antonio's healthcare landscape. However, it closed in 2019, leaving the property abandoned. InnJoy considered converting the building into a hotel but opted for residential units due to shifting market demands.

    The Nix Center redevelopment is part of a broader trend in San Antonio to repurpose outdated commercial buildings into residential and mixed-use spaces. Other notable projects include the conversion of the Tower Life office building into 230 mixed-income apartments and the Travis Building into 63 luxury apartments.

    A conversion index developed by Yardi Systems assesses buildings' suitability for conversion based on factors such as age, size, and access to public transit. San Antonio's office stock ranks 45th nationally in terms of conversion potential, with only 8.2% deemed suitable for redevelopment.