AUSTIN | Project Updates Thread Part II

[wwmiv]

Originally Posted by Croon

Last summer mid July I got back from Houston during afternoon rush. Manor was a 🞵🞵🞵🞵 show. Hung a right on Parmer get to Techridge/35. Parmer was nuts. Road construction since then is better, but the wave of development has continued. I'd rather have seen Parmer become a freeway from 35, over or under 130, to 290E.

I don't envy folks in Manor with their commutes.

Many years back they made a 290 bypass outside of Hempstead near Houston. The old 290 portion became 290 Business through town. I guess there's too many logistical obstacles to give Manor that treatment.

• Thru Manor, thankfully, most businesses are set back from the highway so that there is enough room for an eventual limited access upgrade.

https://www.kxan.com/traffic/traffic-pro...0-toll-road-between-manor-and-elgin/amp/


• Giddings will require a bypass (which should be easily accomplished):

https://ftp.txdot.gov/pub/txdot/get-involved/aus/us290-giddings/040924-constraint-map.pdf

https://ftp.txdot.gov/pub/txdot/get-involved/aus/us290-giddings/040924-exhibits.pdf


• Elgin is the potential nightmare. Older businesses (and some residential) that were not set back far enough from the highway (nobody back when they were built anticipated the eventual need for a limited access upgrade) thru nearly the entire town.

[clubtokyo]

East Parmer is suburban??? It does not look anything like Round Rock, Cedar Park, or Leander... but ok? Like literally Manor is closer to Austin than any of the other suburbs.

[austlar1]

Originally Posted by wwmiv

All of it irredeemably suburban 🞵🞵🞵🞵.

Speaking of irredeemable suburban 🞵🞵🞵🞵, has anyone ventured out on 290 headed towards Dripping Springs past the "Y" intersection in Oak Hill? I was out that way for the first time in a few years. Aside from the roaring traffic and road construction (freeway to DS??), the stuff built and under construction adjacent to the highway is so discouraging to see. It was a huge relief to get back into Austin and onto city streets that integrate at least somewhat with the fabric of the city.

[H2O]

Originally Posted by wwmiv

• Thru Manor, thankfully, most businesses are set back from the highway so that there is enough room for an eventual limited access upgrade.

https://www.kxan.com/traffic/traffic-pro...0-toll-road-between-manor-and-elgin/amp/


• Giddings will require a bypass (which should be easily accomplished):

https://ftp.txdot.gov/pub/txdot/get-involved/aus/us290-giddings/040924-constraint-map.pdf

https://ftp.txdot.gov/pub/txdot/get-involved/aus/us290-giddings/040924-exhibits.pdf


• Elgin is the potential nightmare. Older businesses (and some residential) that were not set back far enough from the highway (nobody back when they were built anticipated the eventual need for a limited access upgrade) thru nearly the entire town.

290 through Elgin is already built as a bypass of Main Street. At Giddings it goes right through town.

[H2O]

Originally Posted by austlar1

Speaking of irredeemable suburban 🞵🞵🞵🞵, has anyone ventured out on 290 headed towards Dripping Springs past the "Y" intersection in Oak Hill? I was out that way for the first time in a few years. Aside from the roaring traffic and road construction (freeway to DS??), the stuff built and under construction adjacent to the highway is so discouraging to see. It was a huge relief to get back into Austin and onto city streets that integrate at least somewhat with the fabric of the city.

Yes! Not that long ago, everything past the Y was narrow country roads, with lovely Hill Country views. Now it is just rooftops and freeway sprawl. All of the highway upgrades are just making it worse.

[Urbannizer]

Far West

[ahealy]

Originally Posted by clubtokyo

East Parmer is suburban??? It does not look anything like Round Rock, Cedar Park, or Leander... but ok? Like literally Manor is closer to Austin than any of the other suburbs.

Yeah, I agree. I do think Parmer between MoPac and 35 has major potential for development. I could easily see something like Wurzbach Pkwy in SA. Just add trees, apartments and retail.

[wwmiv]

Words and context matter.

Reading comprehension matters.

I was replying to a post talking about the ongoing construction along East Parmer (presumably east of I-35). I called the stuff under construction “irredeemably suburban” (which it is). I did NOT use those words to describe the built environment of the entire corridor as it currently exists (which varies between suburban, exurban, and rural). The words were CLEARLY directed at ONLY what is currently constructed/under construction.

Oh, and Parmer between MoPac and I-35 is beside the point. That is West Parmer, as it is east of Center Lake Drive (which itself is east of I-35).

[Urbannizer]

[SproutingTowers]

While walking around the Contemporary Austin at Laguna Gloria I spotted this crane.

[randalls]

Wow, units "starting at $10MM"?? Who are typically the people that buy condos at that price range in a city like ours? That is wild.

Originally Posted by Urbannizer

[wwmiv]

To answer the question above:

House #10 for non-locals who are occasionally here on business or pleasure.

[GoldenBoot]

Sixth&Blanco project is a go!

Riverside Resources and MML Hospitality have secured a $193M construction loan on the project. It will include 50k SF of luxury retail and restaurant space, a 57-room boutique hotel (run by MML Hospitality) and 10 residential units - which have a starting price of $10M and average 4,600 SF each.

The residential units have a 2Q2027 target delivery date.



https://www.bizjournals.com/austin/news/2024/10/08/west-sixth-blanco-austin.html

[WestAustinite]

From ABJ:

A nearly $200 million construction loan has been secured for Sixth&Blanco, a mixed-use project coming to West Sixth Street that recently broke ground.

Austin-based Riverside Resources, a real estate development and investment firm, along with Austin-based restaurateur Larry McGuire, co-founder of MML Hospitality, are bringing the 1.6-acre Sixth&Blanco project — formerly dubbed Clarksvillage — to life at the intersection of West Sixth and Blanco streets. It's comprised of eight properties on the 1100 and 1200 blocks of West Sixth.

Riverside and McGuire closed a $193 million construction loan for the project with Arvest Bank and participation from Prosperity Bank and Southside Bank, according to an announcement.

Sixth&Blanco potentially could achieve the status of prominent Austin retail magnets such as The Domain and South Congress Avene. That's because West Sixth Street is expected to become a haven for luxury brands, according to some experts. It's in a high-income area, already has an established food and dining scene and is near MoPac Expressway, providing easy access.

On South Congress, retail rent prices have hit about $200 per square foot. Space on the high-profile strip commands the highest retail rent in Austin, followed by The Domain and Domain Northside, with downtown Austin third.

Sixth&Blanco is the first Texas project designed by Swiss architectural firm Herzog & de Meuron. The project will feature 10 residences, a 57-room hotel operated by MML Hospitality, a private member social club and bathhouse, high-end retail, art galleries and restaurants.

Once finished, Sixth&Blanco will yield an additional 50,000 square feet of new retail and restaurant space.

Homes will be built on the top two levels of the five-story Sixth&Blanco, at an average of 4,600 square feet and a starting price of $10 million — comparable to homes along Lake Austin or a penthouse downtown. The residential portion of Sixth&Blanco is scheduled for delivery in the second quarter of 2027.

It’s unclear if retail tenants have been chosen for Sixth&Blanco, but additional retail space in Austin is likely to be welcomed by many businesses. The city has maintained an approximately 97% retail occupancy rate for more than a year and brokers don’t expect that to ease up, because limited inventory is coming down the pipeline.

“As we break ground, we couldn't be happier to bring the vision of Herzog & de Meuron and a collection of special businesses to our favorite neighborhood in Austin,” McGuire said in a statement.

The area already features a few key MML projects, including a smaller-sized Swedish Hill, Howards Bar and Club, and Clark’s Oyster Bar.

McGuire couldn't be reached for comment.

Late last year, Riverside purchased additional space just a short walk from the Sixth&Blanco project. The West Side Village property features an approximately 51,000-square-foot retail space and separate parking lot.

Other high-end projects by Riverside include Fifth&West, 300 Colorado and Centro.

[Croon]

Originally Posted by randalls

Wow, units "starting at $10MM"?? Who are typically the people that buy condos at that price range in a city like ours? That is wild.

Starting at $10MM. Hell nah. Gross.

I was friends with a business near 6th & Blanco. They were screwed over and pushed out - rent doubled and they couldn't meet it. MML Hospitality took over their space with posh/upscale/high end/bougie vibes. If you pull up the Google reviews on Howards there, you see a lot of racial bias and discrimination reported by patrons. An air of pretentiousness too there (dress code enforced). Shoot, Townes Van Zandt used to have an apartment in the upstairs quarters. I know he's rolling over in his grave.

Anyway, apparently is was all pretty rotten how that ordeal went to down to nudge out a long time Austin business just to make an extra buck.

I'm convinced MML and their posse want to turn W 6th (and W 5th.) corridor in Rodeo Drive. There's nothing over there currently or coming online that I care to patronize. If they want to make a difference and preserve the Austin vibe, they would develop real affordable housing and curate business vibe that appeals to a greater mix and number of folks.

[WesternSon]

Originally Posted by Croon

Starting at $10MM. Hell nah. Gross.

I was friends with a business near 6th & Blanco. They were screwed over and pushed out - rent doubled and they couldn't meet it. MML Hospitality took over their space with posh/upscale/high end/bougie vibes. If you pull up the Google reviews on Howards there, you see a lot of racial bias and discrimination reported by patrons. An air of pretentiousness too there (dress code enforced). Shoot, Townes Van Zandt used to have an apartment in the upstairs quarters. I know he's rolling over in his grave.

Anyway, apparently is was all pretty rotten how that ordeal went to down to nudge out a long time Austin business just to make an extra buck.

I'm convinced MML and their posse want to turn W 6th (and W 5th.) corridor in Rodeo Drive. There's nothing over there currently or coming online that I care to patronize. If they want to make a difference and preserve the Austin vibe, they would develop real affordable housing and curate business vibe that appeals to a greater mix and number of folks.

Are you really crying about gentrification of Clarksville?! LOL

[atxsnail]

Originally Posted by WesternSon

Are you really crying about gentrification of Clarksville?! LOL

To be fair, there was definitely gentrification worth crying about that happened in Clarksville. OP was just about a hundred years too late.

[dilliam]

Originally Posted by Croon

Starting at $10MM. Hell nah. Gross.

I was friends with a business near 6th & Blanco. They were screwed over and pushed out - rent doubled and they couldn't meet it. MML Hospitality took over their space with posh/upscale/high end/bougie vibes. If you pull up the Google reviews on Howards there, you see a lot of racial bias and discrimination reported by patrons. An air of pretentiousness too there (dress code enforced). Shoot, Townes Van Zandt used to have an apartment in the upstairs quarters. I know he's rolling over in his grave.

Anyway, apparently is was all pretty rotten how that ordeal went to down to nudge out a long time Austin business just to make an extra buck.

I'm convinced MML and their posse want to turn W 6th (and W 5th.) corridor in Rodeo Drive. There's nothing over there currently or coming online that I care to patronize. If they want to make a difference and preserve the Austin vibe, they would develop real affordable housing and curate business vibe that appeals to a greater mix and number of folks.

Brooo hahahaha

[wwmiv]

Originally Posted by atxsnail

To be fair, there was definitely gentrification worth crying about that happened in Clarksville. OP was just about a hundred years too late.

LMFAO. This is the best comment on here in a long time.

[Croon]

Originally Posted by WesternSon

Are you really crying about gentrification of Clarksville?! LOL

Pardon my sardonic, old Austin curmudgeonly tendencies. Clarksville has been fine as it was in its recent decades, unless change was brought to fruition, like affordable housing in the city center. No need for this posh project, that's all I'm saying. $10 million dollar condos? Lol, Bros. Don't help normalize this wealth hoarding. It's uncool, unweird and unAustin.

I guess, Howards, Rosie's and this broader MML project is meant to appeal to the AirBnb jetsetters, carpetbaggers that have gradually woven itself into the fabric of Clarksville.