AUSTIN | Third + Shoal | 389 FEET | 29 FLOORS | U/C | Complete

[78701]

That metal garage siding is really standout-ugly. It could possibly look better if it were lighter gray color to match the horizontal stripes across the glass.
And I still cant wrap my mind around the old Amsterdam-style narrow gap between it and the Proper. What... were... they... thinking?..

[Geckos_Rule]

Originally Posted by 78701

What... were... they... thinking?..

"We already have a tenant pre-leasing 90% of the building for several years now, so let's do the absolute minimum required and cheapest possible."

[freerover]

Originally Posted by 78701

That metal garage siding is really standout-ugly. It could possibly look better if it were lighter gray color to match the horizontal stripes across the glass.
And I still cant wrap my mind around the old Amsterdam-style narrow gap between it and the Proper. What... were... they... thinking?..

They still have not covered a significant portion of the parking garage. You'll still see the metal on the southwest corner but the way the left half of the west cascade juts out hopefully should take the focus away from the right side. The final building will match the renderings in terms of the glass.


Here is a photo of the glass panels that have not yet been installed and there are a lot more of them:



I'm not saying it's the nicest building in the world but just to be patient.

[78701]

Originally Posted by freerover

I'm not saying it's the nicest building in the world but just to be patient.

That I can do
Still the other part of my rant remains: how did this canyon between the two buildings happen? The office-dwellers may not care all that much, but I can't imagine people paying the Proper prices would love a condo with windows staring at an office building within a paper clip throw. I know I wouldn't - there's plenty of better options nearby.

[chundercracker]

Originally Posted by 78701

That I can do
Still the other part of my rant remains: how did this canyon between the two buildings happen? The office-dwellers may not care all that much, but I can't imagine people paying the Proper prices would love a condo with windows staring at an office building within a paper clip throw. I know I wouldn't - there's plenty of better options nearby.

Most north facing windows in the Proper are actually spandrel. Every floorplan with a northern exposure also has either a west or east facing view so they're basically corner units but don't have "corner" floorplans.

[78701]

Originally Posted by chundercracker

Most north facing windows in the Proper are actually spandrel. Every floorplan with a northern exposure also has either a west or east facing view so they're basically corner units but don't have "corner" floorplans.

Thanks for the explanation, this makes sense.

[austlar1]

Originally Posted by 78701

That I can do
Still the other part of my rant remains: how did this canyon between the two buildings happen? The office-dwellers may not care all that much, but I can't imagine people paying the Proper prices would love a condo with windows staring at an office building within a paper clip throw. I know I wouldn't - there's plenty of better options nearby.

I wondered the same thing and even looked at Proper floorplans to try to get an answer. It is a long dark run between those two buildings for sure, but the units seem to face away from the dark alley in most instances. I am not sure what the other poster meant by spandrel windows. Does that mean they will be translucent rather than transparent? Can somebody post a picture once these windows are installed? The balconies on the front units are angled away from the office building, so I guess that does provide for decent privacy and an unobstructed view for those units. It will be interesting to finally see some pictures taken inside those units adjacent to the office building. This is a very pricey condo product, so I guess they have it figured out.

[Sigaven]

Originally Posted by freerover

They still have not covered a significant portion of the parking garage. You'll still see the metal on the southwest corner but the way the left half of the west cascade juts out hopefully should take the focus away from the right side. The final building will match the renderings in terms of the glass.


Here is a photo of the glass panels that have not yet been installed and there are a lot more of them:



I'm not saying it's the nicest building in the world but just to be patient.

How do you know this glass is for the garage? Why would they put on metal screens first and then glass over?

[freerover]

Originally Posted by Sigaven

How do you know this glass is for the garage?

because I read the image captions.

Originally Posted by Sigaven

Why would they put on metal screens first and then glass over?

The glass is just a aesthetic veneer over the parking structure. You put the outside layer on after the inside. They are probably waiting to install them to decrease the chance of damage or dirt getting on the glass while the rest of the building is in construction.

[futures]

Originally Posted by freerover

because I read the image captions.




The glass is just a aesthetic veneer over the parking structure. You put the outside layer on after the inside. They are probably waiting to install them to decrease the chance of damage or dirt getting on the glass while the rest of the building is in construction.

Hmm. Gensler's own comments in this thread certainly suggest otherwise. They were defending why so much grey panels were used and why the current look differs from the render.

Also, the parking sections that currently have glass did not have the grey metal before the glass was installed. Glass went up at the same time as the grey panels on the northeast section of the parking podium.

Hope you're right though.

[Jdawgboy]

Originally Posted by freerover

because I read the image captions.




The glass is just a aesthetic veneer over the parking structure. You put the outside layer on after the inside. They are probably waiting to install them to decrease the chance of damage or dirt getting on the glass while the rest of the building is in construction.

If the captions say those windows are specifically for the garage section then that's good to hear. Since I use my phone to check and post on the forum, I'm unable to read the articles because they are paid subscription and I can't press escape to bypass.

[Sigaven]

Originally Posted by freerover

because I read the image captions.




The glass is just a aesthetic veneer over the parking structure. You put the outside layer on after the inside. They are probably waiting to install them to decrease the chance of damage or dirt getting on the glass while the rest of the building is in construction.

What caption where? Can you copy and paste it here? I can't read the article.

It makes no sense to have glass over metal screens. That means the metal screens are just a waste of money. Plus, the glass panels are located *inside* the garage - they would either have to remove the metal screens and then put on the glass, and put *back* the metal screens from the inside (if their plan is simply to put the glass over the metal screens), or bring the windows back down to the ground and raise them by crane to install them.

Maybe whatever caption you saw may have just been a reporter confused by seeing glass inside the garage, that is perhaps actually going to go up the building and be installed in the upper floors but is being stored in the garage for now where it is protected from the elements.

I really wish you were right about this being glass for the garage, but I am almost positive what we see is the final product, sadly.

[freerover]

Originally Posted by Sigaven

What caption where? Can you copy and paste it here? I can't read the article.

It seems like those windows can hook onto the latches on the gray wall. Look at the sides of the windows in the image above and the latches on the wall below:

Originally Posted by AusTxDevelopment

Generally, if you have metal mesh screens it's for ventilation. They would have to install a mechanical ventilation system in the garage in order to cover it completely with glass, which is expensive to include in the original plans and VERY expensive to retrofit if it wasn't in the original plans.

My thought is that Facebook might be behind the upgrades, if in fact they are switching out the metal screens for glass. Maybe Facebook doesn't want the cheap option on their Austin flagship location? Just speculation on my part.

There is no way they changed the material during construction. There is no way they would be able to do that without submitting changes to the city. Whatever building you see at the end of construction was what they intended the entire time. The designs still call for half of the podium to have exposed ventilation without windows.

The ABJ could be wrong but I just really don't think the developer would be using the renderings they are using if the design changed that drastically. I can't think of any building that didn't update renderings after such significant changes. It still might not look that good once it's done but give it a chance.

[AusTxDevelopment]

Originally Posted by freerover

There is no way they changed the material during construction. There is no way they would be able to do that without submitting changes to the city. Whatever building you see at the end of construction was what they intended the entire time. The designs still call for half of the podium to have exposed ventilation without windows.

The ABJ could be wrong but I just really don't think the developer would be using the renderings they are using if the design changed that drastically. I can't think of any building that didn't update renderings after such significant changes. It still might not look that good once it's done but give it a chance.

Actually, once you begin construction, the changes you make to the plans are submitted to the city but they don't get posted on the city's permit site unless the changes are so drastic that they impact the site development permit. Things like adding to the number of floors, increasing the impervious cover, that kind of thing. Changes made during construction are handled through change orders. The public wouldn't see those so unless someone from Trammell Crow confirms it, we won't know if there have been upgrades to the building's skin and/or garage ventilation.

With regard to renderings, they are not required to be updated. They are not even required to be done at all. Line elevations in the site plans are all you really need to get your project approved, and even those don't get updated after the site development permit is issued.

Full color renderings are generally produced strictly to market the project, first to attract investors to fund it, and secondly to attract tenants after construction starts but before the building takes shape. Renderings are expensive and if your rendering is close enough to the original, you can continue to use it in your marketing regardless of if there were changes made to the exterior of the building. Of course, if your rendering shows a blue glass 20 story tower and you end up with a red brick 5 story building, you are going to want to either update the renderings or scrap them altogether.