AUSTIN | The Independent | 690 FEET | 58 FLOORS | Complete - Page 125

The ATX · #**2481** Posted **Jan 28, 2022, 8:48 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Edwardilimo

I only watched one episode of this program.

Do you have any context for that comment? It's been almost three months since the last post in this thread. Are you stating that you watched the one episode of Impossible Engineering that featured this building?

GoldenBoot · #**2482** Posted **Jan 28, 2022, 8:59 PM**

The Independent was featured on this show months ago...

StoOgE · #**2483** Posted **Jan 28, 2022, 9:01 PM**

Well, while this is up here - can we like make them turn their lighting back on at night?

Mopacs · #**2484** Posted **Jan 28, 2022, 10:44 PM**

Installing a fence 700 feet above street level is quite the engineering feat

clubtokyo · #**2485** Posted **Jan 28, 2022, 11:10 PM**

Why is it so hard to keep skyscrapers lit in Austin?! Dallas seems to shine like Hong Kong with no issues.

austlar1 · #**2486** Posted **Jan 28, 2022, 11:23 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by clubtokyo

Why is it so hard to keep skyscrapers lit in Austin?! Dallas seems to shine like Hong Kong with no issues.

Probably condo HOA's are not all that keen on the added expense and bother involved in providing lighting. Commercial office buildings and hotels have a lot more incentive (brand recognition) to light their buildings, but most of Austin's tallest are apartment towers

zrx299 · #**2487** Posted **Jan 29, 2022, 3:31 AM**

LED lighting costs pennies on the dollar. Why the hell bother to build something bold and architecturally significant to the skyline only to disappear at night? They should've just built a tall rectangular glass box and called it a day if they can't/won't spend the HOA's pocket change from 7 and 8 figure units to properly light the damn thing for a few hours at night. Turn it off at 12am, 1am, 2am...

What's going on right now is just an industrial-sized middle finger to anyone who looks up at night. I flat out refuse to believe there isn't a solution that is cost effective, energy efficient, *and* aesthetically pleasing. It's NOT that difficult.

ahealy · #**2488** Posted **Jan 29, 2022, 3:57 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by zrx299

LED lighting costs pennies on the dollar. Why the hell bother to build something bold and architecturally significant to the skyline only to disappear at night? They should've just built a tall rectangular glass box and called it a day if they can't/won't spend the HOA's pocket change from 7 and 8 figure units to properly light the damn thing for a few hours at night. Turn it off at 12am, 1am, 2am...

What's going on right now is just an industrial-sized middle finger to anyone who looks up at night. I flat out refuse to believe there isn't a solution that is cost effective, energy efficient, *and* aesthetically pleasing. It's NOT that difficult.

Couldn't agree more. Austin's skyline at night is a total and complete joke.

Jdawgboy · #**2489** Posted **Jan 29, 2022, 6:02 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by ahealy

Couldn't agree more. Austin's skyline at night is a total and complete joke.

Yea I agree too.

clubtokyo · #**2490** Posted **Jan 29, 2022, 10:47 PM**

Yeah and if I am paying a million for a condo and the HOA a grand a month they better put the freaking building lights on. I want to be able to point at night say “i live in that building”

Lobotomizer · #**2491** Posted **Jan 29, 2022, 11:00 PM**

It is rather bizarre, unless something has stopped working and requires repair.

As mentioned before any cost of note would have already been incurred. The cost of electricity to run those LED lights is miniscule.

It looked really nice when lit at night, and while I didn't love the look during the day I thought many of the comments I read on here were a bit over the top in their negativity.

With that said, earlier today I was downtown and got a very good look at the crown. I do believe it may be rusting. It looks bad, and the fact these materials were used this should have been anticipated. If I were a resident I would be furious, and as an Austinite seeing this at the top of a very prominent building in the skyline I find unacceptable.

I doubt anything can be done, but whomever made the decision on the crown design and materials should be ashamed.

The ATX · #**2492** Posted **Jan 29, 2022, 11:28 PM**

We have multiple posters who live at the Independent. Maybe they can share some info from their HOA about that?

KevinFromTexas · #**2493** Posted **Jan 30, 2022, 12:18 AM**

I have a feeling we'll never see it lit again. The owners spent some money on it already and now that it isn't working they have no incentive to fix it. If lit condo towers were high priority or a necessity then they'd all be lit, and that's not true. LEDs are also notoriously unreliable. While the diodes themselves will last a long time, though, some colors have their issues, the power supply to them is sometimes less reliable than the diode "lights" themselves.

clayton_rogue · #**2494** Posted **Jan 30, 2022, 12:21 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by The ATX

We have multiple posters who live at the Independent. Maybe they can share some info from their HOA about that?

At first I thought it was due to the bird migration stuff. Now, I'm not so sure. I'll hit up our internal Slack channel and let ya'll know what I find out.

Riverranchdrone · #**2495** Posted **Jan 30, 2022, 2:59 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lobotomizer

It is rather bizarre, unless something has stopped working and requires repair.

As mentioned before any cost of note would have already been incurred. The cost of electricity to run those LED lights is miniscule.

It looked really nice when lit at night, and while I didn't love the look during the day I thought many of the comments I read on here were a bit over the top in their negativity.

With that said, earlier today I was downtown and got a very good look at the crown. I do believe it may be rusting. It looks bad, and the fact these materials were used this should have been anticipated. If I were a resident I would be furious, and as an Austinite seeing this at the top of a very prominent building in the skyline I find unacceptable.

I doubt anything can be done, but whomever made the decision on the crown design and materials should be ashamed.

I believe you are right about the rusting.

DJI_0887-HDR by Jason Luebbe, on Flickr

Lobotomizer · #**2496** Posted **Jan 30, 2022, 4:29 AM**

Yep, it did not used to look that way. Unfortunately, at this point the solution would be very expensive. Short of the building owners winning a lawsuit I can't see this ever being rectified.

clubtokyo · #**2497** Posted **Jan 30, 2022, 4:30 AM**

For the love of engineering and design there has to be a better solution for this “crown”.

Lobotomizer · #**2498** Posted **Jan 30, 2022, 6:07 AM**

Here's a link to a crude rendering of what could have been using the photo Riverranchdrone posted.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/H21uauyfA6opc9W66

The idea is the crown would have been glass instead of wire, mesh, or whatever is up there currently.

I made the lower portion the same blue (looks green in this photo to me) as the glass in the rest of the building, and then a white glass up top.

Of course all white, or something else may look better, but I was trying to be a tad creative without anything too wild.

clubtokyo · #**2499** Posted **Jan 30, 2022, 6:49 AM**

Looks so much better! It should have been glass!

TXLove · #**2500** Posted **Jan 30, 2022, 8:54 AM**

Have yall seen The Gables Park Plaza tower lately? That thing looks horrible at the top. If you ever had the pleasure of sitting at the 5th and Lamar traffic light it sticks out like a sore thumb. Bet they use the same type of materials for the tower going up at 415 Colorado