AUSTIN | Tech 3443/Zen Garden/Austin Viie/EightFold | Mixed Use Development

[KevinFromTexas]

https://www.bizjournals.com/austin/news/2018/02/01/huge-project-in-east-austin-aims-to-lure-amazon.html

Huge $400M project in East Austin aims to lure Amazon, rival The Domain as Austin's 'second downtown'

Just six miles from Austin’s urban core, a local developer has quietly broken ground on a $400 million mixed-use project he believes will one day rival downtown and The Domain — and potentially even score Amazon.com Inc.'s second headquarters.

The 125-acre project, called Eightfold, aims to transform the decaying former Motorola campus in East Austin into a beacon of the “live-work-play” concept based on the eight principles of Buddhism.

With 4.8 million square feet in entitlements — that's the equivalent of about nine Frost Bank Towers — the project has permits to remodel three buildings, and additional permitting is underway, according to city of Austin records. The company reports it secured its first $200 million in financing. About 300 subcontractors already are on site with plans to deliver 525,000 square feet of building space by the end of the year. Eightfold already has secured about 250,000 square feet in leases from three major tenants.


The renderings from the article:

Office towers
https://i.imgur.com/IvAOF1C.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/YhG8d7v.jpg

Mixed use - Office, hotel, retail
https://i.imgur.com/JeU4IMD.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/7YhUGMY.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/13V9WLd.jpg

[clubtokyo]

https://www.bizjournals.com/austin/news/2018/02/01/huge-project-in-east-austin-aims-to-lure-amazon.html


The renderings from the article:

Office towers
https://i.imgur.com/IvAOF1C.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/YhG8d7v.jpg

Mixed use - Office, hotel, retail
https://i.imgur.com/JeU4IMD.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/7YhUGMY.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/13V9WLd.jpg

Reminds me of an Asian development. It would be cool if this really cam to life but I’m not confident.

[austlar1]

Isn't this location a straight shot down MLK from 183 to downtown area? 183 is slated for major upgrade through that area as well. This seemingly out of the way location could actually prove to be very accessible to town and to new housing developments on the east edge of Austin. If it happens, the inner east side gentrification might become a tsunami. Fingers crossed on this one. The renderings are kind of scary though. Definitely not my cup of tea.

[Riverranchdrone]

Wont those towers be too tall to by in ABIA's flight path?

[ahealy]

Omg this is so great....reminds me of something you'd see near NASA.

[Novacek]

Wont those towers be too tall to by in ABIA's flight path?

The tower renders definitely don't match the article

"Construction crews are busy plowing through the cleanup and renovations as Zarafshani secures additional permitting and zoning variances to allow for greater building height to 60 feet. "


The current zoning appears to be LI-NP.


The most recent Code Next proposed zoning was IF (industrial flex).


To do this proposal, it definitely seems like they'd have to do a PUD.

[freerover]

A big advantage of the lot is the ability to add a stop onto possible future Green and Mokan Lines. Someone like Amazon settling here and donating to the construction of the line in exchange for incentives would add a lot of value to the lot and to the city.

It would give you a rail connection to downtown, connection to the Red Line, East Austin, Manor and Elgin via the Green Line. It would also connect to a possible future rail to the airport by Transferring at the Downtown Station. There is also ROW available to build a rail line using the old Mokan tracks to Pflugerville, Round Rock and Georgetown and that line would go through Eightfold on its way to downtown.


I mean, 183 is going to have less congestion than 35 especially if/when they rebuild 35. This is what they are in the process of turning 183 into:
jtu8ap9TfI0#t=1m23s

[Novacek]

A big advantage of the lot is the ability to add a stop onto The Green Line.

The corporate campus part of the property is actually pretty far removed from the Green Line (1/3 mile at the closest and across what may officially be part of the Walnut Creek Green Belt).

That's about as far as the Domain, but it's nothing like the potential of Broadmoor.

[freerover]

The corporate campus part of the property is actually pretty far removed from the Green Line (1/3 mile at the closest and across what may officially be part of the Walnut Creek Green Belt).

That's about as far as the Domain, but it's nothing like the potential of Broadmoor.

They could use the ROW from the Mokan line which runs next to the complex by Hudson St and then cut through the Water Treatment plan to get back to the green line rail.

[Novacek]

They could use the ROW from the Mokan line which runs next to the complex by Hudson St and then cut through the Water Treatment plan to get back to the green line rail.

You're proposing to re-route the path of the actual Green line into the Mokan corridor to run it closer?

It definitely has that advantage (and what you're re-routing it away from doesn't really have any development/density).

My concerns would be

1. The additional cost above and beyond the large cost to start passenger service on the green line.
2. TxDot apparently claims Mokan can't be used for rail.
3. You'd be introducing 2 pretty small radius curves (ie slow) to get back to the old alignment.
4. There's also the disruption/potential disruption to the greenbelt, the trail, and the water treatment plant.

None of those are necessarily fatal (if that were to be the cost of getting Amazon) but they are some hurdles.

[KevinFromTexas]

Isn't this location a straight shot down MLK from 183 to downtown area? 183 is slated for major upgrade through that area as well. This seemingly out of the way location could actually prove to be very accessible to town and to new housing developments on the east edge of Austin. If it happens, the inner east side gentrification might become a tsunami. Fingers crossed on this one. The renderings are kind of scary though. Definitely not my cup of tea.

MLK is a bit north of there, but not by much. You're right, it would be the logical artery into downtown from there. There's also the rail line bordering it to the south. It's not a bad plan really. The only fly in the ointment is the contrary FAA since both runways at ABIA line up almost perfectly with the property.

It's why I think Riverside Drive and environs (south to 71) is a much more logical target of increased vertical density on that side of the city.

[austlar1]

Just looked at a map. The longer runway on the west side of airport lines up a bit west of the project. The shorter runway on the eastern side of airport lines up very close to the eastern edge of the site. The site is about three miles (maybe a little more) distance from the end of the runways, so I am guessing that nothing taller than 20 stories would be permitted, maybe less. It would be another office park environment, but if enough housing and other amenities are included, it could house a considerable office component as well as new well located (and possibly more affordable?) housing. I totally agree that the Riverside corridor is the logical place to plan for really tall buildings. I expect that area to merge into an expanded central business district over the next 20 or 30 years, if Austin can continue to grow and prosper.

[ILUVSAT]

If the FAA is screwing with height in the CBD...think what they can limit here!

I don't see anything above 6-7 stories on this site cuz of the damn FAA.

[The ATX]

Everything about this project seems like a silly fantasy except the fact that $200 million in financing has been raised. So I'm hopeful that this turns into something more than rehabbed abandoned industrial buildings.

[austlar1]

If the FAA is screwing with height in the CBD...think what they can limit here!

I don't see anything above 6-7 stories on this site cuz of the damn FAA.

The current recommended FAA height restriction is no taller than 250 feet within 10,000 feet of the end of a runway. This Eightfold site is about 15,000 feet (aprox. 3 miles) from the end of any runways. The FAA wanted to reduce this nationwide standard recommendation (it is not legally binding, but any development not adhering to it would face ruinous insurance costs and difficulty with lenders) to 160 feet as recently as 2014 or 2015. They got an enormous amount of push back from real estate developers around the country, and I don't believe it was actually changed. I think buildings as high as 20 stories might be possible in this development

[austlar1]

Everything about this project seems like a silly fantasy except the fact that $200 million in financing has been raised. So I'm hopeful that this turns into something more than rehabbed abandoned industrial buildings.

The HQ2 part seems silly to me, but the time might be right to try to attract substantial business development over in that area. The location is really rather central in an odd sort of way. It is just a few miles from downtown. There is massive new residential development happening just northeast of there, and the city wants more of the same. There is a long term possibility of commuter rail of some sort headed from town to Manor and Elgin. The new not-so-free "Airport Freeway" is under construction directly adjacent. The area between 183 and IH35 is a very trendy gentrification zone now that old East Austin has become so expensive. I think there is real potential for something game changing to happen there.

[wwmiv]

Here are some drone shots posted on Vimeo a year ago by EightFold of the current land:

https://vimeo.com/188317789

[The ATX]

Eightfold Development added a full on Fantasy Land video to their Youtube Channel this afternoon. It starts off with drone shots of the campus from the Vimeo video that wwmiv posted before it gets weird. They even have a couple of robots mingling among the happy humans in a futuristic greenspace.

vmXbPKdoXxI

Here are some stills of the towers that will never happen. But I can't fault the developer for dreaming.

https://i.imgur.com/6kTFbwl.png
https://i.imgur.com/C5WeX77.png
https://i.imgur.com/Q9rYS7t.png
https://i.imgur.com/7oS08jd.png

[Jdawgboy]

Um yea... Can you say in your dreams? There be flying saucers or giant drones floating around lol. The quality is horrible, looks like something out of the late 90s. Is this a plan for the year 2100 I take it?.

I mean seriously, the presentation is at best unprofessional and at worst, down right ridiculous.

This leaves me with serious questions regarding the legitimacy of this company and how serious they are with the future development of this property.

If your going to make a video showing a vision, it's a good idea to produce the highest quality that you can because I can't see how they can lure companies with something so cheesy.

[wwmiv]

The whole thing looks like MineCraft.

[The ATX]

They have another video released in January that has photos of the actual work taking place after the fantasy portion ends. This is awesome. Those towers can't be too far off at this pace.

https://i.imgur.com/MOLYJDo.png


The guys are gettin' 'er done inside as well.

https://i.imgur.com/d1Gcodc.png

7xKYvtMrFWA

[LoneStarMike]

There be flying saucers or giant drones floating around lol.

Hell - they might as well go all the way:

https://i.imgur.com/Qzb0k0K.jpg

[The ATX]

All those tube transport lines going around their future campus reminded me of something, but I couldn't figure out what. But I remember now:

6F1QNfmiqHc

[wwmiv]

This is very much a Houston-style suburban highrise office park.

[The ATX]

This is very much a Houston-style suburban highrise office park.

Is that a space joke, or is this really just like a suburban Houston office park? :)

[wwmiv]

Both?

[Riverranchdrone]

Many of those tubed carried gas and chemicals you don't want to be near. HF is the one I am most afraid of, but many are very deadly. Great place for houses and restaurants lol.

[Jdawgboy]

Many of those tubed carried gas and chemicals you don't want to be near. HF is the one I am most afraid of, but many are very deadly. Great place for houses and restaurants lol.

Exactly, it's an environmental disaster waiting to happen and Texas has a poor track record in that department. If only they could completely remove those.

[Jdawgboy]

Hell - they might as well go all the way:

https://i.imgur.com/Qzb0k0K.jpg

Now that is perfect!!!:cheers: probably one of the best joke rendering memes ever on SSP! Lmao

[LoneStarMike]

:previous:

This one could work, too.

https://i.imgur.com/sCmyrq3.jpg

[paul78701]

This is very much a Houston-style suburban highrise office park.

Exactly. This isn't urban at all. They just have a few skyscrapers instead of just mid-rise office buildings. After all the hype they seem to have put out, this is a bit disappointing.

The Domain is more urban than this. And the Domain could use some improvements as far as walkability goes.

[starboy92]

it looks like a screen shot from someones cities skylines game they cant possible be serious with that shit

[IluvATX]

We can be critical of this, but these things look to be pushing 400'

[freerover]

I hope the people behind the development really know what they are doing because there is a ton of potential here. People are going to freak out when the new 183 opens in 2020 and there is a N/S option in the center of the city that isn't always congested. Interest is going to flood to the corridor.

We can be critical of this, but these things look to be pushing 400'

I don't understand how you could build that high this close to the airport when you are definitely in the flight path of the East Runway and inside the airport overlay.

[Jdawgboy]

I don't understand how you could build that high this close to the airport when you are definitely in the flight path of the East Runway and inside the airport overlay.

That's why they have hovercraft saucers in the vid. By the time they build those buildings, planes As we know them will be obsolete...:clown::d:jester::thankyouthankyou:

[IluvATX]

That's why they have hovercraft saucers in the vid. By the time they build those buildings, planes As we know them will be obsolete...:clown::d:jester::thankyouthankyou:

Those renders were obsolete after 1960.

[freerover]

Seems like there was a small bump in the road with the rezone. The Fire review was rejected but it's not uncommon for some things to get rejected and have to be modified. Looks like they are still waiting for legal review from city staff. It would then have to go to the zoning committee, then council and then a site plan would need to be submitted for approval for what they want to build. The project is inside the Airport overlay so it might take some extra time to make sure everything is in compliance.


Even if the city green lights a 400' cap, it's possible for the FAA to give a risky assessment for a building which means no insurance company would cover it. I mean look at that:

https://i.imgur.com/ZHAiSCm.png

[clubtokyo]

What a weird video and music.

[Jdawgboy]

Seems like there was a small bump in the road with the rezone. The Fire review was rejected but it's not uncommon for some things to get rejected and have to be modified. Looks like they are still waiting for legal review from city staff. It would then have to go to the zoning committee, then council and then a site plan would need to be submitted for approval for what they want to build. The project is inside the Airport overlay so it might take some extra time to make sure everything is in compliance.


Even if the city green lights a 400' cap, it's possible for the FAA to give a risky assessment for a building which means no insurance company would cover it. I mean look at that:

https://i.imgur.com/ZHAiSCm.png


The developer is banking on the land being in between the runways but still looks to be too close to have anything significantly tall.

[The ATX]

The Planning Commission was set to hear the zoning change request next week (05/22). But the applicant requested an indefinite postponement:

http://www.austintexas.gov/edims/document.cfm?id=298845


Here's the zoning change request filed last November. The developer wants to build 400' (silly fantasy goofy) towers.

https://abc.austintexas.gov/web/permit/public-search-other?t_detail=1&t_selected_folderrsn=11828428&t_selected_propertyrsn=5110471

[The ATX]

Lost in the MLS debate, the zoning change for this one has been indefinitely postponed by the applicant. I guess we'll have to wait for those goofy fantasy towers.

101. C14-2017-0148 - Eightfold - District 1 - Conduct a public hearing and approve an ordinance amending City Code Title 25 by rezoning property locally known as locally known as 3443 Ed Bluestein Boulevard (Walnut Creek and Boggy Creek Watersheds). Applicant Request: To rezone from limited industrial-neighborhood plan (LI-NP) combining district zoning to limited industrial-planned development area-neighborhood plan (LI-PDA-NP) combining district zoning. Staff Recommendation: Pending. Planning Commission Recommendation: Postponed indefinitely by Applicant. Owner/Applicant: 3443 Zen Garden, LP (Adam Zarafshani) Agent: Sprouse Shrader Smithfield (Terrence L. Irion). City Staff: Heather Chaffin, 512-974-2122.
INDEFINITELY POSTPONED BY APPLICANT
http://austintexas.gov/council_meetings/action_notes.cfm?mid=609

[drummer]

Lost in the MLS debate, the zoning change for this one has been indefinitely postponed by the applicant. I guess we'll have to wait for those goofy fantasy towers.


http://austintexas.gov/council_meetings/action_notes.cfm?mid=609

Aw shucks. As I recall, those were dangerously close to the flight path for ABIA anyway, right... :rolleyes:

[ATXboom]

IMO this was a half ass play for Amazon... AMZ probably notified Austin what properties are def out of consideration. The timing of this with the upzoning near domain is interesting.

[urbancore]

IMO this was a half ass play for Amazon... AMZ probably notified Austin what properties are def out of consideration. The timing of this with the upzoning near domain is interesting.

bet.

IF Amazon were to choose it, pretty sure that would have been a pre-condition.

[The ATX]

Unbelievable.

Amazon HQ2 is out, but $1.2 billion still pouring into East Austin project with offices, hotels, shops:

https://www.bizjournals.com/austin/news/2018/08/30/amazon-hq2-is-out-but-1-2-billion-still-being.html

[freerover]

Nothing in the article on why the rezone has been postponed. Was this a paid placement?

[ILUVSAT]

They are not going to get clearance from the FAA to build anything close to what they have proposed.

[Riverranchdrone]

I will try to get some pictures on my lunch break. But they have a metal skeleton of a 5 story building already on site.

[The ATX]

I will try to get some pictures on my lunch break. But they have a metal skeleton of a 5 story building already on site.

Awesome.

I can't believe they are still promoting the project with Jetson/Futurama buildings. I'm disappointed that the ABJ didn't call them out. The ABJ featured the "story" as breaking news for quite awhile, and the silly renderings are still front and center on their website. :shrug:

[JoninATX]

https://www.americaninno.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Screen-Shot-2018-01-16-at-9.44.32-AM.png

Progress July 2018
https://youtu.be/f6QWeqoM-SI

[The ATX]

The contractor has weekly drone updates on the construction. This screen cap is apparently from this weekend. It shows a few stories being added to one of the buildings.

https://i.imgur.com/sD0wQNK.png
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAJiCFFwUeyksIzAhNn_OHA/videos

[AusTxDevelopment]

Here is a new marketing brochure for this project. No crazy high-rises, just traditional mid-rise office buildings with lots of green space.

http://flyers.ngkf.com/NewMarkContent/Items/109831/NKF_Eightfold_102018.pdf

[Echostatic]

Disappointed, but not surprised. Those towers always seemed close to the flightpath, and without Amazon I doubt there would be demand for towers like that east of 183.

[The ATX]

This project has landed its first big tenant. A co-working company called Work Well Win. It was founded by a former WeWork executive, and this Austin location is expected to be their flagship location.

https://www.americaninno.com/austin/inno-news/co-working-space-to-anchor-major-development-in-east-austin/

[We vs us]

I don't care what you say. This is still the weirdest project in the city.

[StoOgE]

I don't care what you say. This is still the weirdest project in the city.

The entire video of nothing but stock footage is one of the greatest things ever.

This is one of the weirdest things a mixed used development to put on their website:

EIGHTFOLD’s philosophy is based on the tenets of the Buddhist Noble Eightfold Path and is designed to create a community without boundaries, transcending traditional work and life environments and awakening the body, mind, and spirit. By focusing on natural restoration and modern technological innovation, EIGHTFOLD envisions a compact, diversified space to empower entrepreneurship, art, innovation, and wellness, interweaving all eight pillars into community members’ daily lives.

The non-existent Yogo Studios being on of the 8 pillars is nice.

https://eightfolddevelopments.com/yoga/

Mark your calendars, the next yoga class will be held at 4 p.m.


Oh boy guys, the next Yoga class is in a location we can't explain at 4PM on a day we can't define. Maybe it's in the pillar of your inner-mind of office building.

and of course, the pillar of organic farming that every co-office work-life restorative nonspiritual mind-body experience needs:

https://eightfolddevelopments.com/organic-farming/

The best part of all of this, is it's just an old underused low-rise suburban tech park that is being lightly renovated to update it and rent out the same facilities that have been there for 20 years.

This screams "rich guy made a smart unexciting investment that is a slam-dunk cash maker in the current Austin setting and has a niece/nephew/kid that they let put their marketing degree to work"

[AusTxDevelopment]

This project has landed its first big tenant. A co-working company called Work Well Win. It was founded by a former WeWork executive, and this Austin location is expected to be their flagship location.

https://www.americaninno.com/austin/inno-news/co-working-space-to-anchor-major-development-in-east-austin/

Austin Inno is a little late to the party. The biz journal included Work Well Win in their February 2018 story: https://www.bizjournals.com/austin/news/2018/02/01/huge-project-in-east-austin-aims-to-lure-amazon.html

Here are a couple of quotes. Sounds like WWW is a bit delayed.

Work Well Win estimates it will be open by summer 2018. And Zarafshani said he’s pulled back from several planned projects to focus on Eightfold.

Some key features of the four- to six-year project include:


109 acres zoned for light industrial, commercial and office. Nearby, there is another 49-acre site for multifamily housing, with the idea the residents can bike to work.
Contractors are repurposing 1.49 million square feet into mostly office space and related amenities. Eightfold wants to add several million square feet of new buildings within the next six years.
100,000 square feet of co-working space run by a new startup called Work Well Win, founded by former WeWork executive Frank Bistrian.
An expansive marketplace featuring local goods and organic produce grown on site — think Seattle’s Pike Place Market — plus performance space for musicians.
A food hall featuring national chains as well as local restaurants. Eightfold reportedly is negotiating with celebrity chef Todd English to design the concept. English couldn't be reached for comment.
A 100,000-square-foot “medical co-working” space, called Medical Wellness Fusion, ran by internist and hospitalist Dr. Fara Ranjbaran (who is also Eightfold’s chief medical officer and married to Zarafshani). Medical Wellness Fusion will act as a co-op where individual health care providers can lease space to operate a practice while Medical Wellness Fusion will handle billing and administrative tasks.
120,000 square feet of organic greenhouse hydroponic gardens run by a New York-based firm specializing in urban agriculture called Gotham Greens. The company declined to comment.
A tech lab for the nonprofit Austin Freenet, which will house a re-training program for veterans and other workers entering the IT field. Eightfold will offer the space rent-free.
A system of hiking trails and expanded bicycle trails in collaboration with Texasbike.org.
Currently in design phase, Eightfold is partnering with another company to create a hotel-office-retail space on site, but cannot yet release details about the hotel’s design.
At full build-out, 75 percent of the campus’ power will be from renewable sources, using a solar array-and-battery power system and a thermal energy storage system to cool the buildings with ice

[AusTxDevelopment]

I don't care what you say. This is still the weirdest project in the city.

Second weirdest, imho, next to Forza at Circuit of the Americas. :D

[drummer]

Second weirdest, imho, next to Forza at Circuit of the Americas. :D

Is that the one where you can drive your car onto the track if you live there?

[freerover]

Some changes for Eightfold

-Limit the 400 ft maximum to 10 acres fronting 183 for 3 buildings.
-A height limit of 280 ft for 2 more buildings on an 8 acre site also fronting 183.
-Modify the rest of the land to 120 feet except for two existing 185 ft buildings
-Modify the parking requirement to a %50 reduction

New facts in the rezone:
-The 5 new buildings would be about 3 million sq feet.
-About 5,700 parking spaces in the under building parking structures

[Riverranchdrone]

They are putting glass on the one building they did build. and it looks like they are adding on to it also which is weird.

[Mopacs]

https://youtu.be/NViLMZC6fAc

https://youtu.be/NViLMZC6fAc

[Echostatic]

Youtube throwing me a "Video Unavailable" error

[The ATX]

Some changes for Eightfold

-Limit the 400 ft maximum to 10 acres fronting 183 for 3 buildings.
-A height limit of 280 ft for 2 more buildings on an 8 acre site also fronting 183.
-Modify the rest of the land to 120 feet except for two existing 185 ft buildings
-Modify the parking requirement to a %50 reduction

New facts in the rezone:
-The 5 new buildings would be about 3 million sq feet.
-About 5,700 parking spaces in the under building parking structures

What is the source for this info?

[freerover]

What is the source for this info?

Sprouse Shrader Smith Lawfirm.

[The ATX]

Sprouse Shrader Smith Lawfirm.

So what you posted is what the Eightfold developers want to be able to do after a zoning change request? I'm guessing the ZC is still a work in progress.

[freerover]

So what you posted is what the Eightfold developers want to be able to do after a zoning change request? I'm guessing the ZC is still a work in progress.

Yep but they seem ready to proceed to a zoning hearing with these new height requests. Hopefully in the next 6 weeks.

[lzppjb]

https://youtu.be/NViLMZC6fAc

https://youtu.be/NViLMZC6fAc


NViLMZC6fAc

[freerover]

Eightfold is scheduled for the Planning Commission on August 27th but it will be postponed at that time by the Applicant. City Staff is not sure what date they will be requesting, but they think it will be late September or October.

[Riverranchdrone]

Eightfold is scheduled for the Planning Commission on August 27th but it will be postponed at that time by the Applicant. City Staff is not sure what date they will be requesting, but they think it will be late September or October.
Excuse my ignorance but what would they be needing to go to the planning commision for? the next building on the site?

[The ATX]

Excuse my ignorance but what would they be needing to go to the planning commision for? the next building on the site?

A zoning change for taller buildings. It would then go to City Council if the Planning Commission approves it.

[freerover]

Some changes for Eightfold

-Limit the 400 ft maximum to 10 acres fronting 183 for 3 buildings.
-A height limit of 280 ft for 2 more buildings on an 8 acre site also fronting 183.
-Modify the rest of the land to 120 feet except for two existing 185 ft buildings
-Modify the parking requirement to a %50 reduction

New facts in the rezone:
-The 5 new buildings would be about 3 million sq feet.
-About 5,700 parking spaces in the under building parking structures

Looks like City Staff wants to cap all buildings at Eightfold at 120'. Eightfold is going to the planning commission asking for 400' cap right next to 183 like mentioned above and 280' cap for the rest of the property except for Building B.

STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
Staff supports the Applicant’s request of LI-PDA-NP zoning, with conditions.
The Applicant requests the following:
1. The property is permitted to utilize a 50% parking and loading area reduction. 2. Building B shall be no greater than 160’ of height.
3. All other buildings east of Semiconductor Drive shall be no greater than 120’ of
height.
4. For the portion of the property that is bounded by Ed Bluestein Boulevard,
Technicenter Drive, Semiconductor Drive and Central Avenue, buildings shall not
exceed 400’ of height.
5. For the remaining portion of the property that is west of Semiconductor Drive,
buildings shall not exceed 280’ of height.
Staff supports conditions 1, 2, and 3 but does not support 4 or 5. With the exception of Building B, Staff recommends that all other buildings on the property shall not exceed 120’ of height.

[Novacek]

Looks like City Staff wants to cap all buildings at Eightfold at 120'. Eightfold is going to the planning commission asking for 400' cap right next to 183 like mentioned above and 280' cap for the rest of the property except for Building B.

STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
Staff supports the Applicant’s request of LI-PDA-NP zoning, with conditions.
The Applicant requests the following:
1. The property is permitted to utilize a 50% parking and loading area reduction. 2. Building B shall be no greater than 160’ of height.
3. All other buildings east of Semiconductor Drive shall be no greater than 120’ of
height.
4. For the portion of the property that is bounded by Ed Bluestein Boulevard,
Technicenter Drive, Semiconductor Drive and Central Avenue, buildings shall not
exceed 400’ of height.
5. For the remaining portion of the property that is west of Semiconductor Drive,
buildings shall not exceed 280’ of height.
Staff supports conditions 1, 2, and 3 but does not support 4 or 5. With the exception of Building B, Staff recommends that all other buildings on the property shall not exceed 120’ of height.

Yeah, 400 feet was always going to be a hard sell. Brandywine was able to get Broadmoor up to 360 (not by right, just with a _lot_ of bonuses) by paying for (half) a station next to an operating commuter rail line.

Short of Eightfold tossing in a couple hundred million or more, to get the green line up and running sooner than the next 10-20 years, I don't think it happens.
And then you still have the problem that where they want to put the 400 footers is 3/4 mile away from the green line (at its closest).

[The ATX]

^ That info came from this PC backup file for the 10/08 meeting.

http://www.austintexas.gov/edims/document.cfm?id=328713


This is from the same file. With a zoning change, buildings 1,2 & 3 would be 28-stories/400' and buildings 4 & 5 would be 17-stories/280'

https://i.imgur.com/wyDNxQl.png

[enragedcamel]

Looks like City Staff wants to cap all buildings at Eightfold at 120'. Eightfold is going to the planning commission asking for 400' cap right next to 183 like mentioned above and 280' cap for the rest of the property except for Building B.

STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
Staff supports the Applicant’s request of LI-PDA-NP zoning, with conditions.
The Applicant requests the following:
1. The property is permitted to utilize a 50% parking and loading area reduction. 2. Building B shall be no greater than 160’ of height.
3. All other buildings east of Semiconductor Drive shall be no greater than 120’ of
height.
4. For the portion of the property that is bounded by Ed Bluestein Boulevard,
Technicenter Drive, Semiconductor Drive and Central Avenue, buildings shall not
exceed 400’ of height.
5. For the remaining portion of the property that is west of Semiconductor Drive,
buildings shall not exceed 280’ of height.
Staff supports conditions 1, 2, and 3 but does not support 4 or 5. With the exception of Building B, Staff recommends that all other buildings on the property shall not exceed 120’ of height.

That really sucks. I had high hopes for this project.

[freerover]

That really sucks. I had high hopes for this project.

The planning commission could recommend to council to approve the 400' towers over city staff.

[enragedcamel]

The planning commission could recommend to council to approve the 400' towers over city staff.

Well, I hope they do. That part of town could really use additional development.

[freerover]

Well, I hope they do. That part of town could really use additional development.

I agree. I'm not too far away from this spot. I already contacted district 1 staff about it.

[The ATX]

The zoning change request was postponed on consent.

[freerover]

The zoning change request was postponed on consent.

What was the conversation?

[The ATX]

What was the conversation?

There wasn't any discussion other than it was "postponed by the neighborhood until November 12."

[H2O]

There wasn't any discussion other than it was "postponed by the neighborhood until November 12."

When something is on consent, it generally does not get discussed.

[freerover]

You can email the case manager and make your support known for the 400' caps Heather.Chaffin@austintexas.gov. It'll get to the commission and council.


I wish there was a way to require a cap metro green line contribution before the rezone kicks in like Broadmore.

[KevinFromTexas]

^ That info came from this PC backup file for the 10/08 meeting.

http://www.austintexas.gov/edims/document.cfm?id=328713


This is from the same file. With a zoning change, buildings 1,2 & 3 would be 28-stories/400' and buildings 4 & 5 would be 17-stories/280'

https://i.imgur.com/wyDNxQl.png

These are all office towers, aren't they? Or will they be mixed use?

You can email the case manager and make your support known for the 400' caps Heather.Chaffin@austintexas.gov. It'll get to the commission and council.


I wish there was a way to require a cap metro green line contribution before the rezone kicks in like Broadmore.

Cool. I sent them an email in support of it.

[KevinFromTexas]

So, I added the Eightfold towers to my Google Earth model I've done. The placements are based on the site layout that the ATX posted, as are the heights of the buildings - 400 feet and 280 feet. I wanted to see how they would look in relation to downtown and I was curious where they might pop up in views. I left the compass on to help with the directions.

https://i.imgur.com/MgeK6Jy.jpg

Eightfold with the Domain beyond. The yellow tower on the horizon is adjacent to one of the old IBM office buildings. The placement isn't right, but I was wanting to see how a 400 footer would appear up there.

https://i.imgur.com/Zsoo0e8.jpg

The Oracle campus and the Town Lake Circle residential project on the left, and downtown. The green building in the middle left behind downtown is the South Austin Hospital expansion.

https://i.imgur.com/sTxvd97.jpg

Riverside area, downtown, Eightfold, and The Domain from ~10,000 feet. The red building north of downtown by itself is the North Austin Complex state office building.

https://i.imgur.com/pWP0KXo.jpg

View of downtown and Eightfold from the Travis County Expo Center. You can also see the three midrises at I-35 and 71 on the left hand side just sticking up on the horizon.

https://i.imgur.com/gmG4Uu6.jpg

St. Edward's University view. I was surprised to see Eightfold show up there.

https://i.imgur.com/ey7mc43.jpg

West Courtyard Drive off 360.

https://i.imgur.com/xGfVmHh.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/SPywIIX.jpg

And a view closer to my neighborhood. This is from a hill just east of Deaton Hill Drive on William Cannon Drive just west of West Gate Boulevard in South Austin. Again, I was really surprised to see it show up there. Eightfold is 10 miles away from this location.

https://i.imgur.com/xuCm6N9.jpg

The view from the South Austin Hospital parking garage. Eightfold and the Domain can be seen here.

https://i.imgur.com/cLpKdmt.jpg

183, north of 71. Downtown on the left. You can also just barely see the Domain in the middle.

https://i.imgur.com/9XXPpwq.jpg

71, east of ABIA. It's funny, but Eightfold and The Domain merge into one skyline here. ABIA's control tower is on the left.

https://i.imgur.com/wz4iJh8.jpg

[Mopacs]

Great job with those Kevin. Can you post angles from farther north, including the Domain?

[Jdawgboy]

Awesome! Would be cool to see South Shore Central towers.

[gillynova]

Wow! Thank you for compiling those photos of projected developments from different angles Kevin! Those are amazing and I'm sure it took you awhile to build all that

[freerover]

That's really awesome! Is there a publicly accessible link where we can login and see views from different areas?

[KevinFromTexas]

That's really awesome! Is there a publicly accessible link where we can login and see views from different areas?

I'm not aware of a way of doing that. I wish there was so that people could do some screenshots of the places they know of where good views are to be had and share them. Plus, I would be more than happy for everyone else to enjoy it and even contribute to it if there was a way of doing it.

[The ATX]

It seems like there should be a way to allow public access to a Google massing map similar to the CVC map wwmiv made in the sticky development thread. But I don't know how to do that at the moment. I don't think allowing public access for editing would be a good thing though.

[KevinFromTexas]

It seems like there should be a way to allow public access to a Google massing map similar to the CVC map wwmiv made in the sticky development thread. But I don't know how to do that at the moment. I don't think allowing public access for editing would be a good thing though.

Ok, I found a way. I had been looking through the tabs at the top left, which weren't any help until I added a new placemarker today for that fantasy "Star Tower (https://austin.towers.net/downtown-austin-needs-a-signature-tower-so-this-guy-designed-one/)" proposal. When you add a place marker or any kind of object to the map, it gives you the option to save it to your folder and also to add it to a file, which I'm assuming will automatically update each time you add a new marker. I was able to do that. It's a KMZ file, which you then have to download and then save to your Google Earth program. I actually would have two files to send, because I have my map of the models I did that just show the models themselves, and then a separate list where I labeled each model. I did that way so that could switch off the labels whenever I wanted to while still having the models show up.

If anyone wants them, I can email the files to you. Just send me a private message. Both files are under 40 kilobytes.

Eventually, I'd like do some screenshots for every new project and post them into the building threads. And I'd like to create a main thread that I'll post updates to whenever something changes like a height or something.

[Riverranchdrone]

I dont think I would want to eat anything from that urban gardening area. Being so close to a plan that has so many Hazardous chemicals and gases. Although the sewage treatment plant down the road spews its own toxic gases as well.

[freerover]

Ok, I found a way. I had been looking through the tabs at the top left, which weren't any help until I added a new placemarker today for that fantasy "Star Tower (https://austin.towers.net/downtown-austin-needs-a-signature-tower-so-this-guy-designed-one/)" proposal. When you add a place marker or any kind of object to the map, it gives you the option to save it to your folder and also to add it to a file, which I'm assuming will automatically update each time you add a new marker. I was able to do that. It's a KMZ file, which you then have to download and then save to your Google Earth program. I actually would have two files to send, because I have my map of the models I did that just show the models themselves, and then a separate list where I labeled each model. I did that way so that could switch off the labels whenever I wanted to while still having the models show up.

If anyone wants them, I can email the files to you. Just send me a private message. Both files are under 40 kilobytes.

Eventually, I'd like do some screenshots for every new project and post them into the building threads. And I'd like to create a main thread that I'll post updates to whenever something changes like a height or something.


Thanks for sending! It's been fun seeing all the angles. Can you add the Burj Dubai to downtown just for fun?

[KevinFromTexas]

Thanks for sending! It's been fun seeing all the angles. Can you add the Burj Dubai to downtown just for fun?

I've done that before just for fun, yeah. You can add your own models. I've even played around with it and put a high rise in my neighborhood just to see what the views would be like. To do it, you use the "add pologon" tab in Google Earth. Fly over to wherever it is you're wanting to add your model. For a square or rectangular model, all you have to do is put down 4 dots. You don't have to drag your cursor. If you do that it'll make your model look crazy. Just put down 4 dots and shape it whatever you want. If you want it to be triangular, then you only need 3 dots. Once you place a dot, it will open box with a bunch of options - description, color, view, altitude, and measurements. To scale the height, you need put in a number under the altitude tab. It uses the metric system, by the way. There's also a scroll down menu that will say "clamped to ground". You want to click on that and select "relative to ground" because that will attach your model to the countour of the sea level elevation of that site. You also want to check the "extend sides to ground" box. And last, put in your height. So if it's a 500 foot model, you'd put in 152.4 as the height. You can also change the color to whatever you want even after you've created the model. Don't forget to save it under the file tab under "save my places". You can also create folders to make different model sets. I have models for a bunch of cities, not just Austin, so I wanted multiple folders so that I didn't have models of other cities showing up in my Austin folder.

It took me a while to figure it out, but once I did it was a lot of fun to play around with. When I added a model equal to the height of Burj Dubai, I was shocked that I could see it from the top of my street with a lot of ease. You can also view these models in the streetview version in Google Earth. So you don't only have to fly around. It's useful in determining where a skyline view might pop up from or if you're interested in seeing what a building might look like on the skyline from your favorite view.

[The ATX]

Postponed again. Rescheduled for 12/10 PC meeting.

http://www.austintexas.gov/edims/document.cfm?id=331004

[The ATX]

Update from the ABJ. Not much is happening yet accept a name change. The first big tenant Work Well was planning to take100,000 Sq. Ft. But that didn't happen.

https://www.bizjournals.com/austin/news/2019/11/12/east-austins-old-motorola-campus-on-its-way-to-a.html?ana=e_du_prem&j=90211341&t=Afternoon&mkt_tok=eyJpIjoiTURSalpEUmxNelkwTnpGbSIsInQiOiJQT2t1b0djY3N3dHg2TjZRWHFTakJoeitKVnZxUFVTSEYrNnY5VFBxdktlR3VlZWZmZE5pRFwvT0tKb25SSlhNdFFGQmVXVTkyUktqaVh6YXRIOTNhZE1JWG83QU5vTlEzOG85bWtnNmowazdGQmdcL1Z2OU5sZ3U5NktxbkhXZ3dvIn0%3D

[We vs us]

Jan says the property is facing foreclosure:

https://atxrealestatenews.com/2019/11/17/foreclosure-lawsuit-facing-big-makeover-of-former-motorola-campus-dubbed-austin-viie

[freerover]

Jan says the property is facing foreclosure:

https://atxrealestatenews.com/2019/11/17/foreclosure-lawsuit-facing-big-makeover-of-former-motorola-campus-dubbed-austin-viie

Sigh... Why can't far east Austin have nice things....

[The ATX]

The article also explains the name change.