Defense Authorization Bill Expands Missions Acreage

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — The San Antonio Missions National Historical Park will be expanding.  

The San Antonio Express-News (http://bit.ly/1zVuO7B ) reported Monday that the 137-acre addition is due to the Missions National Historical Park Boundary Expansion Act. The measure was part of the defense authorization bill that President Barack Obama signed into law Friday.

The law will affect San Antonio's four Spanish colonial missions maintained by the National Park Service.

The newly annexed land is around Missions San Jose, San Juan and Espada. The property includes part of the San Juan Dam and the head gate to a Spanish colonial-era drainage structure.

The park service owns 30 of the additional acres. The rest is owned by the San Antonio River Authority, the city and Bexar (bayr) County.