More than a century ago, park commissioner Ray Lambert looked out over an abandoned limestone quarry and imagined a Japanese-style garden featuring stone bridges, flowing water and lush greenery.

San Antonio’s Japanese Tea Garden will host a disco night this Friday.

The conservancy is pushing for a $62 million overhaul of the 1930s-era, city-owned theater, located next to the Japanese Tea Garden in Brackenridge Park. Plans include new facilities, professional lighting and sound systems, and a sweeping roof that covers the stage and expanded seating area.

SAN ANTONIO – The Japanese Tea Garden in San Antonio is one of the most beautiful places in the city and admission is free. (Photos courtesy UTSA Libraries Special Collections)Photograph shows gate on pathway from the sunken garden up to Alpine Drive. (Photos courtesy UTSA Libraries Special Collections)Photograph shows view from the Tea House towards the Sunken Garden. (Photos courtesy UTSA Libraries Special Collections)Photograph shows stone houses formerly used by Alamo Cement Company near the Sunken Gardens (Japanese Tea Garden). (Photos courtesy UTSA Libraries Special Collections)Photograph shows looking down from bluff towards Japanese Tea Garden.