Mission Drive-In

Statewide Drive-In Theatres opened the Mission Drive-In on Roosevelt Avenue, on San Antonio's South Side near Mission San José, on March 27, 1948. The first feature was Pirates of Monterey with Maria Montez. The lot held 760 cars, with a seating area for 120 more people, and the tall screen tower carried a mural of the nearby mission.

The Mission added a second screen on April 12, 1957, and later grew to four, operating as the Mission 4. Over the years it was run by Gulf States Theatres, Act III Theatres and Santikos Theatres. John Santikos recalled in a 2002 oral history that he had bought every drive-in then operating in San Antonio. In its final years it was the last drive-in in the San Antonio area. In March 2007 Santikos announced it would not open for the season, and the drive-in closed.

The City of San Antonio bought the 26-acre site in 2007 and in 2008 hired Kell Muñoz Architects to design the Mission Branch Library next door and a plan for the rest of the property. In 2010 the city signed an agreement with the Texas Historical Commission to preserve the site and the view around Mission San José. Parts of the drive-in came down in 2009, but the screen tower and marquee stayed.

Re-creating the mural divided the neighborhood. The original showed two human figures, including a man seated in a sombrero, that some residents found offensive. At a 2012 public meeting city officials said those images would not return in the re-created mural, which a design firm was hired to paint for $160,000.

The $2.3 million conversion began in February 2012 and finished in April 2013. The asphalt became lawn, and the city added a stage, new LED lighting on the marquee, restrooms and a projection room. Mission Marquee Plaza held its grand opening on June 7, 2014. It now hosts free outdoor family movie nights, sponsored by the city's World Heritage Office, along with markets and cultural events.