The city should designate this area at the "Uninspired Drive-thru Bank District". That design is horrible... and only made worse by the fact that there is a drive thru cutting through a pedestrian area.

The original Gensler design was much better.

The design could have been better, but I'm not to concerned about a drive thru going through the building and it looks like the drive thru will be placed under the parking garage so it will be kinda hidden in plan sight. Btw if I'm not mistaken Chase tower has a drive thru also.

Here's the original. This one was designed by Gensler, while the current one that will be built is by HKS.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8142/7...25dfdbe6_z.jpg
Gensler

Isn't there a drive through in Lavaca Plaza, too? As a matter of fact, One Congress Plaza has a drive through also for Wells Fargo.

Agreed. However, I am thankful to be talking about something other than hamburger chains!

no way, some things are just not good any which way you see it. it's like choosing the lesser of two evils. i find no comfort in any form that at least we don't have nothing going on for that site. i'd rather have held on, and left it a parking lot until something good comes along if we really want a skyline that will stand for the test of times and not seem outdated in just a few decades.

but like i said, i'm mostly just upset because that last design seemed so cool and now just seems like we were getting our chains pulled a little on it just so some bank can build.

Oh. My. God. That was the IBC building? I was so excited about that building! Oh well. Too bad. Fuck them. Assholes.

Still, that block has a CVC going right through the middle of it. We're lucky that a highrise is getting built there at all. There's a small sliver of the block on the northwest side that isn't within that CVC. This building will probably only occupy half the block, maybe less. So it's possible something else could be built to the west of it.

Exactly.

Why can't there be some agreement when they pull out these designs? If the design is going to change they shouldn't get some cookie cutter design. They should send that bank to Victoria TX or something. That's just not cool at all.

Man, I remember a time when I would have begged on the streets of downtown Austin for a building like that. And I'm sure they're still doing that in Victoria.

Yeah, sometimes I'm really creeped out by the forum. We shouldn't be happy JUST BECAUSE something is going to be built on that block. If you continue that mindset, you'll be Anytown, USA.

I know what you're saying but seriously, they were just yanking our chains. At this point, I feel happy enough with what Austin already has that if I had the ability to I'd wait to sell that property and wait for something better to get built there. Why seem desperate to fill an empty block and just wait for a better design? It's not like we have a choice in it but if I had the ability I'd wait for something better then fill just to fill. I mean, this is the same area where we had the gensler design and an awesome museum planned, where the Travis Courthouse will now build. It went from awesome to mediocre just like that.

But whatever... too bad. I just hope that the designs for the Greenwater Treatment doesn't change yet again for something less than what it is now. If it does, I just might start siding with the NIMBYs on this.

Yeah, I agree. If they cut those trees down (at green) they might as well cut off their own heads. The last thing this city needs is more generic look-a-like urban junk. Mark my words: If Austin continues to cater to F1 and expensive urban living, with no momentum towards better pub transit, I. am. out. Maybe I've been living downtown to long...? Or maybe they're trying too much to be like Dallas??

Ok guys, I heard something interesting Friday night. I know some people who have food trailers downtown and I was talking to one of them and she told me they are beginning to look for a new place but its getting harder to find open lots still available downtown. Word is several lots have been bought out for plans for development. In fact the lot they are on which is the sw corner of 5th and Colorado may be bought out fairly soon and the food trailers there have had heads up that they will have to find somewhere else in a few months. She does not know any other details at this time but it shows there is a lot of interest in downtown with multiple open lots being bought out.

Wasn't that where Starwood's "One Hotel" was gonna go?

Yep, not sure if the project fell through.

Im thinking that it will be something else if the lot is being bought by a new company, Im guessing it will be a totally new project.

Total agree with you HC. I remember being so excited when Austin/Round Rock got it's first Steak-N-Shake. When I would travel in the Midwest, I made it a priority to make at least one SNS stop. I've been to the local SNS maybe twice. I'll be the same with In-N-Out; loved them on the west coast.
With Dans, Frans, Sandy's, P.Terrys' Mighty Fine, Huts, etc., my burger "buds" are totally satisfied! :tup:

Sorry guys for perpetuating the burger "talk".

Well, you know the story - a burger and fries always taste better when there's a 747 a hundred feet overhead... :cool:

Cater to F1??? I wouldn't say they are catering to F1 very much by how some of their votes have gone. Fact is a good chunk of this new development is in part because F1 is coming. I also think that we are going to see a long, sustained building boom (unless the world economy goes down the drain) that we likely would not have seen if F1 was not coming here. I agree we need a lot more affordable housing and better mass transit, but F1 is a huge deal for Austin and it is a good thing. The money alone coming into our economy will blow SXSW's economic impact right out of the water. Anytime there is an opportunity like that I'm for, not to mention the worldwide television exposure Austin will get.