The labyrinth weir dam project was designed to replace an existing failing double gated structure built in 1973. The 2,000 foot-long labyrinth weir design was conceived in order to accommodate the floodwater in an area only 350 feet wide.
LABYRINTH WEIR DAM: Construction began in November 1993 after an extensive review process by the City of San Antonio Parks and Recreation Department, Planning Commission, Historic and Design Review Commission and Public Works Department, the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission, the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers and an adjacent neighbor, Our Lady of the Lake University. The Labyrinth Weir Dam was designed by Brown & Root, Inc. of Houston, Texas. Fernandez, Frazer, White and Associates of San Antonio, Texas did the landscape architectural design.
The $2.8 million construction contract was built by Shannon-Monk, Inc. of San Antonio, Texas. The costs were shared by the City of San Antonio (which contributed $1.2 million) and the San Antonio River Authority, through Bexar County Contract (which contributed $1.6 million). The above costs include design, right-of-way, construction, and administration for the project.
The project was completed in April 1995 and features a 2,000-foot fixed labyrinth weir flood control dam with a 10-foot depth at the dam, maintenance and siltation removal access ramps, improved security lighting around the perimeter of the dam and 19th Street bridge, sidewalks and improved landscape amenities to tie into the existing park space surrounding the project. The dam has a 100 year Q of 18,500 with a design depth of 1.9 feet over the spillway. Approximately 11,800 cubic yards of concrete were used to construct this dam.
