The city of San Antonio is reviewing a push to designate part of Wurzbach Road a cultural corridor to honor the area’s diverse population.

District 8 City Council Member Manny Pelaez recently informed constituents that his proposed Silk Road Cultural Corridor initiative is moving quickly through the city’s vetting process and gaining support from area residents and merchants.

In September, Pealed submitted a council consideration request to formally recognize Wurzbach Road between Northwest Military Highway and Fredericksburg Road a cultural corridor to celebrate communities of Middle Eastern, African and Asian decent who live or work in neighborhoods along that segment.

According to Pelaez’s request, the program would include placement of wayfinding signage, display of culturally relevant public art and planning of public events along the corridor. Pelaez said such a designation if approved would not affect the name Wurzbach Road in any way.

U.S. Census Bureau data shows that two of the three census tracts with the highest percentage of Asian families in Bexar County reside on both sides of Wurzbach Road east off I-10.

“The corridor of Wurzbach Road from Northwest Military Highway to Fredericksburg Road is known for its abundance of iconic Mediterranean, North African, Chinese, Japanese and Indian cuisine and retail establishments,” Pelaez said.

Pelaez added that many major employers in the area, including USAA and hospitals, employ a significant number of professionals hailing from so-called Silk Road countries, and that the area has many houses of worship representing various Silk Road faiths and traditions.

Pelaez said the city’s Office of Historic Preservation’s Cultural Heritage District Program is spending this summer assembling stakeholders and other community members to do cultural mapping and storytelling to collect cultural and historical facts and personal stories about the area.

Pelaez said he expects council to approve the cultural corridor designation sometime this fall.