Basila Frocks has long stood as a quiet but powerful landmark in San Antonio’s Westside — a building that has carried nearly a century of labor, laughter, resilience, and community strength. Built in 1929 by the Basila family, the factory became a presence far greater than brick and mortar. It became a place where people built livelihoods, shaped families, and forged the cultural identity that still defines the Westside today.
Now, as the building undergoes a thoughtful restoration, its role in the community evolves once again. DreamOn Group and Prosper West have come together with a shared mission: to honor what Basila Frocks meant to the generations who built it, and to ensure it becomes a place of opportunity, creativity, and economic growth for the generations ahead.
The restoration of Basila Frocks is not simply about preserving a historic structure — it is about awakening a story that continues to matter.
Stepping into the restored Basila Frocks means stepping into a space where history lives in harmony with new ideas. The building now serves as a mixed-use community hub, intentionally designed to support the entrepreneurs, artists, and organizations shaping the future of the Westside.
From ground-level retail and a vibrant courtyard to affordable office suites and creative studios, every corner of the building reflects a commitment to accessibility, collaboration, and cultural preservation. The goal is simple yet ambitious: to create a gathering place where local talent can build, innovate, celebrate, and contribute to the economic and social vitality of the neighborhood.
Here, community members can share stories, host gatherings, or launch new ventures — all within walls that have long embodied the heart of the Westside. Basila Frocks is once again a place where people come together, find purpose, and make something meaningful.
The story of Basila Frocks begins with the Basila family, Syrian immigrants who arrived in the early 1900s seeking stability and opportunity. With determination and resourcefulness, they opened their ready-to-wear dress factory in 1929 — unknowingly months before the Great Depression would challenge communities across the United States.
When the economic crisis hit, the factory became an anchor for many Westside families. Work was scarce, but Basila Frocks became a place where Latina seamstresses — mothers, daughters, grandmothers, first-time wage earners — could find steady income. They worked with skill, resilience, and a quiet power, stitching far more than garments into existence. They stitched futures. Stability. Hope.
These women became cultural pillars of the Westside. Their labor sustained households. Their camaraderie fueled community strength. And their presence in the factory echoed a deeper truth: the Westside has always been defined not by its challenges, but by the perseverance of those who live and work here.
Even as decades brought change, disinvestment, and shifting policies, the spirit born inside Basila Frocks endured. It lived in the determination of families who continued to push forward. In the small businesses that emerged despite limited resources. In the cultural traditions preserved across generations. The resilience of those early seamstresses — their insistence on carving out a future — became the foundation upon which the Westside stands today.
The revival of Basila Frocks honors that legacy. Every part of the restoration is a tribute to the hands that once worked here, the families who depended on it, and the neighborhood that has always refused to be forgotten. Basila Frocks is more than a restored building — it is a reminder of the strength, creativity, and cultural vibrancy that the Westside has always carried.
Prosper West is a nonprofit community-economic development organization dedicated to transforming San Antonio’s Westside into a thriving place for families and businesses. They work as a coalition of residents, agencies, and local partners to advance opportunity through “The Big Six” focus areas: small business, housing & real estate, promotion & advocacy, cultural preservation, placemaking, and community engagement.
By investing in infrastructure, programs, and partnerships across the Westside, Prosper West enables projects like Basila Frocks to become more than just places — they become engines of economic growth, cultural continuity, and neighborhood pride.
DreamOn Group is a San Antonio-based, full-service development firm that spans design, construction, property management, and community-focused projects. With its roots in over 35 years of professional experience, DreamOn builds with a purpose: to “build things that matter” in communities rather than simply build more real estate.
Their approach emphasizes collaboration, sustainability, equity, and long-term impact — making them a natural partner in revitalizing historically significant places like Basila Frocks so they serve people, stories and futures.
