AUSTIN | Projects & Construction II - Page 389

hismasterplan · #**7761** Posted **Jul 12, 2010, 5:02 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by OU812

Any such thing as overbuilt?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPjzkYobOKE&playnext_from=TL&videos=h4g-t22QvTI

Wow, looked like they were going to scrape the tops of those buildings.

WAustinResident · #**7762** Posted **Jul 12, 2010, 5:49 PM**

My favorite of overbuilt real estate is/was Kowloon walled city. It was probably the most dense residential area on earth EVER before it was torn down in 1993. It was literally 13 blocks of lawlessness on the outskirts of Hong Kong.

StoOgE · #**7763** Posted **Jul 13, 2010, 10:07 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by WAustinResident

My favorite of overbuilt real estate is/was Kowloon walled city. It was probably the most dense residential area on earth EVER before it was torn down in 1993. It was literally 13 blocks of lawlessness on the outskirts of Hong Kong.

Shenmue II has large parts of the 2nd half of the game that take place in Kowloon walled city. Pretty neat area in the game.

crewer · #**7764** Posted **Jul 14, 2010, 11:45 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by hismasterplan

Wow, looked like they were going to scrape the tops of those buildings.

Hmmm... Somebody was obviously not turning off electronic devices prior to landing.

By the way, how would one define "overbuilt"? I was just in Miami where overbuilt applies. Highrises everywhere were sitting virtually empty. If all the buildings in Sao Paulo are occupied, is it overbuilt, or maybe just poorly planned?

OU812 · #**7765** Posted **Jul 14, 2010, 3:01 PM**

I just think it's funny how you sometimes hear people complaining that downtown Austin has way too many new tall residentials -- but looking at the contrast with cities like Sao Paulo, Hong Kong, Tokyo, NYC and you really get the feel that Austin has just a tiny little fraction of what those cities have. I know it's kind of an apples-to-oranges comparison though.

migol24 · #**7766** Posted **Jul 15, 2010, 9:13 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by OU812

I just think it's funny how you sometimes hear people complaining that downtown Austin has way too many new tall residentials -- but looking at the contrast with cities like Sao Paulo, Hong Kong, Tokyo, NYC and you really get the feel that Austin has just a tiny little fraction of what those cities have. I know it's kind of an apples-to-oranges comparison though.

but when is it considered too much? for a metropolitan of almost 2 million... how could there be too much?

Mopacs · #**7767** Posted **Jul 16, 2010, 2:49 PM**

Austin Business Journal has an update on the half-finished Fondren condo tower on Lavaca. The development group has filed for bankruptcy.

http://austin.bizjournals.com/austin/stories/2010/07/19/story1.html?b=1279512000^3649661

priller · #**7768** Posted **Jul 16, 2010, 3:49 PM**

We still have some construction going on downtown, I had a little extra time this morning, so I walked around and took a few photos. Hot outside!

Federal Courthouse:

The W:

The Austonian:

Site of new Starwood "1 Hotel" on 5th and Colorado. They said construction would begin in late 2010. Looking pretty serious here!

Brazos "Great Street" upgrade continues. Slowly. West side is close to complete for 1st and 2nd blocks.

That was fast!

ahealy · #**7769** Posted **Jul 16, 2010, 7:09 PM**

groovy photos! Anyone know how many more floors the courthouse has? Not to sound like a size queen, but I do hope it's fairly tall.

WAustinResident · #**7770** Posted **Jul 16, 2010, 7:49 PM**

I got some pics of construction inside the W hotel condos units. The workers are working on a custom door into the bedroom in one picture and putting AV wiring into the ceilings of the living room in the second.

Its tough to get an idea of what's going on but this is somewhere in the 22-30th floor range. You can see the drywall is about to go up. They are making great progress!

jeremyz · #**7771** Posted **Jul 16, 2010, 8:18 PM**

The W is almost glassed in all the way to the top. The 20' ceilings in the penthouse are crazy tall.

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

nixcity · #**7772** Posted **Jul 16, 2010, 10:29 PM**

^Wow nice view, is that taken from Spring?
Too bad about the Foundran I thought it was a perfect fit for that area of town. Hopefully someday someone will be able to finish it.

hookem · #**7773** Posted **Jul 16, 2010, 10:39 PM**

Thanks for the pics priller, WAustinResident, and jermyz!

The base of the new courthouse looks pretty massive. Also much closer to the street than I thought -- the renderings made it look like it would be surrounded by a buffer zone the whole way around. Perhaps that was just from one angle.

nixcity · #**7774** Posted **Jul 17, 2010, 12:41 AM**

I think the buffer zone will be San Antonio street

MichaelB · #**7775** Posted **Jul 17, 2010, 2:34 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by ahealy

groovy photos! Anyone know how many more floors the courthouse has? Not to sound like a size queen, but I do hope it's fairly tall.

7....

floors (total)

135' tall

arbeiter · #**7776** Posted **Jul 17, 2010, 3:31 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by ahealy

groovy photos! Anyone know how many more floors the courthouse has? Not to sound like a size queen, but I do hope it's fairly tall.

Haha. Um, hahah.

arbeiter · #**7777** Posted **Jul 17, 2010, 3:32 AM**

I don't know what it is, maybe it's the angle you photographed it at, but the W building looks extremely tall from this angle.

photoLith · #**7778** Posted **Jul 17, 2010, 4:30 AM**

So whats this Starwood 1 hotel?

MichaelB · #**7779** Posted **Jul 17, 2010, 5:10 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by photolitherland

So whats this Starwood 1 hotel?

Starwood Hotel 1 is a new " eco-luxury" concept. 17 stories, 250ish rooms.

ahealy · #**7780** Posted **Jul 17, 2010, 6:21 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by MichaelB

7....

floors (total)

135' tall

Yeah, How many more from where it's at now. I am not sure if the basement is being considered a floor or not. Plus the 1st? looks like 2 levels.