AUSTIN | Projects & Construction II

[Cloud92]

Question wasn't the work on the other half of second street suppose to start after SXSW...so any news on that? I haven't been downtown in awhile

[ahealy]

Originally Posted by Syndic

You know, I wouldn't mind this too much if this is what we get. It's not awe-inspiring, but it's just enough to not be a total disappointment.

I agree that twin towers are gimmicky. I wish they would make one slightly taller than the other and change the crowns so that they each look different and unique in some way. As you can see, they are different-looking. They're not identical. But the difference is mostly at the bases. What matters to me if the tops of the buildings. Because that's what people notice.

I wouldn't panic about the bland design. I trust that Trammel Crow would make the finished product look pretty cool. I'm intrigued by the idea that there's a third tower we're not really seeing in that rendering. Better (and more) renderings would be nice.

Regardless, building these would invigorate that area of downtown to an extent we've never seen before. With this and the Seaholm district done, I would actually feel like my city is something to be proud of. Right now, it just feels unfinished and kind of a mess. I mean, just think about it. This is going to create new blocks and streets and intersections! Places to go in Austin that weren't there before.

So, with some minor modifications to this design, I'll be satisfied. Those buildings are pretty tall. It could have been a lot worse. I wish we could just get some sort of guarantee from them, though, instead of this "based on market conditions" crap.

just enough to not be a total disappointment is not good enough for me. We're not lurking SSP for something that just fills or satisfies a need for a cluster of highrises. This is an integral piece of Austin's architectural face.

I know you're on the same page as us, and I agree that it will be a transformative factor for the city's grid...but this current design is just not good enough. It's a slap in the face to those who voted for the original Mithun proposal.

[Syndic]

Originally Posted by ahealy

just enough to not be a total disappointment is not good enough for me. We're not lurking SSP for something that just fills or satisfies a need for a cluster of highrises. This is an integral piece of Austin's architectural face.

I know you're on the same page as us, and I agree that it will be a transformative factor for the city's grid...but this current design is just not good enough. It's a slap in the face to those who voted for the original Mithun proposal.

I think some people are overlooking some good qualities about it. It's not ugly. They're pretty cool looking, actually, as individual buildings. The brown parts are an especially nice feature. And the crowns. They're also taller than the 360. That's pretty tall! I think what people are just disappointed about (me included) is that the main three ones all look pretty much the same.

Can we do something about it? If so, there's reason to fret about it. If not, then there isn't, because it's out of our control and we should just accept it, which I can do, because it's not that bad. This still has to be approved by the city council, so one thing we can all do is call or e-mail our city council members. The more of us that do it the more they'll think it's a widespread disgust with the design among Austin residents. Maybe they'll tell Trammell Crow to go back to the drawing board and make some changes. Another way to make an issue about it is to write a letter-to-the-editor in the Statesman. This will make the issue more publicized, possibly causing more people to get informed and speak out.

I agree that these buildings would be SYMBOLS of Austin. If we don't want them being Austin symbols, then we need to act. And soon. So take those steps I outlined above ASAP or others, if you have any ideas. I have a feeling the city council is going to approve it, if no one speaks out, because of the numerous benefits this development would have. They probably also have access to more renderings that we don't. Maybe we should press them to release those renderings. The citizens of Austin should have a say in this, after all.

[Syndic]

Originally Posted by East7thStreet

I think it's pretty crazy that we have a dozen highrises going up between 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Street.

1st Street:

1.Park Plaza 15 story apartments
2.Seaholm 20 story hotel/condos
3.Green Site 30+ story apartments
4.Green Site 30+ story apartments
5.Manchester 50 story hotel

2nd Street

6.Green Site 17 story hotel
7.Green Site 28 story office
8.White Lodging 34 story hotel

3rd Street

9.Power Station Site ~500 ft Condo Tower
10.Power Station Site ~500 ft Condo Tower
11.Hyatt Place 17 story hotel
12.Whitley Site 17 story apartments

Yep, we're well on our way toward making this a reality:


Image courtesy of the City of Austin

[Solutioneur]

The original TC Proposal included 2.6 million SF, valued at $750 million.

The new TC Proposal includes 1.75 million SF, valued at $500 million.

Total SF reduction / Value of 33%

As best I can tell, here are the changes:

Residential reduced from 1,177 units to 826 units (-30%)
Office SF reduced from 583,000 SF to 456,000 SF (-22%)
Retail SF reduced from 170,000 SF to 82,000 SF (-52%)
Hotel SF reduced from 350,00 SF to 150,000 SF (-57%)
Parking reduced from 5,000 spaces to 2,700 spaces (-46%)

The actual residential SF reduction could be even greater because they've switched from larger condo units to smaller, cheaper apartments.

[NYC_Longhorn]

Originally Posted by StatenIslander237

Sorry to those who are not fond of this but I happen to think this is a seriously cool design...the original rendering had a bit of an amateurish "Sim-City" appearance that made it very hard to visualize. This seems a bit more realistic and I can actually picture an Austin skyline like this. The density will be unprecedented and the way the towers are built right up to Cesar Chavez is very reminiscent of the environment of New York's West Side Highway. Loving every minute of it

I may very well be moving to Austin in the near future so I look forward to watching these and all the other new planned towers grow in the near future.

I couldn't agree more.... these twin towers could be seriously cool... They look very similar to New York's West Side Highway.... and central park west.... the twins can be really great.... somebody put some pictures up or something..... Also, just remember if these two towers were too tall, the skyline could suffer as viewed from the south.... I personally like the stepping up approach that makes downtown look more dense.... especially if they have attractive tops.... For instance, the Monarch lights are very appealing... I'd take that over Spring (which is practically invisible at night)

[SecretAgentMan]

Originally Posted by Solutioneur

The original TC Proposal included 2.6 million SF, valued at $750 million.

The new TC Proposal includes 1.75 million SF, valued at $500 million.

Total SF reduction / Value of 33%

As best I can tell, here are the changes:

Residential reduced from 1,177 units to 826 units (-30%)
Office SF reduced from 583,000 SF to 456,000 SF (-22%)
Retail SF reduced from 170,000 SF to 82,000 SF (-52%)
Hotel SF reduced from 350,00 SF to 150,000 SF (-57%)
Parking reduced from 5,000 spaces to 2,700 spaces (-46%)

The actual residential SF reduction could be even greater because they've switched from larger condo units to smaller, cheaper apartments.

The original figures you cite included the Energy Control Center site, which is under a separate agreement already approved by City Council. The new figures are also minimums under the agreement. If Trammel Crow thinks there is sufficient market demand for any use, the actual square footage could be higher.

As for the architecture, the project will be built in phases, and may have different vertical developers and architects for each block. I think it is far more likely that each building will appear different rather than the same. Renderings at this stage are always preliminary and subject to change.

[JoninATX]

Alamo Drafthouse plans new Lakeline Mall–area location

Alamo Drafthouse Cinema announced plans March 26 to open its newest Austin theater in the Lakeline Market Shopping Center, adjacent to Lakeline Mall. Alamo Lakeline, to be located near Lakeline Boulevard and Pecan Park Boulevard, will be the largest of any Alamo theater to date and will feature 10 screens and a bar with a vast selection of beer on tap. This will be the sixth Austin location. Alamo Drafthouse publicist Brandy Fons said the company plans to keep the Alamo Lake Creek location at 13729 Research Blvd. open. She said the company does not yet have a timeline of when Alamo Lakeline will open. "Ever since opening the Alamo Lake Creek in 2003, we have had tremendous support from the neighborhood,” said Tim League, founder and CEO for Alamo Drafthouse, in a news release. “The New Alamo Lakeline will be the newest state-of-the-art Alamo design. We are so proud to bring it to our loyal fans in North Austin.” The theater will be part of the the new Lakeline Market Shopping Center, anchored by an H-E-B Plus scheduled to open in November.

http://impactnews.com/articles/alamo-drafthouse-plans-new-lakeline-mall%E2%80%93area-location

[Solutioneur]

Originally Posted by SecretAgentMan

The original figures you cite included the Energy Control Center site, which is under a separate agreement already approved by City Council. The new figures are also minimums under the agreement. If Trammel Crow thinks there is sufficient market demand for any use, the actual square footage could be higher.

As for the architecture, the project will be built in phases, and may have different vertical developers and architects for each block. I think it is far more likely that each building will appear different rather than the same. Renderings at this stage are always preliminary and subject to change.

The ECC site explains the reduction in total residential units, not the retail, hotel parking and office space. The anticipated future tax revenues from the TC proposal are now at least 30% less than promised.

[KevinFromTexas]

By the way, something I forgot to mention the other day. Gensler is working on designing the Green site towers. Gensler is also designing the Grand Hotel/Manchester Hotel. They're also doing the Block 51 office tower.

http://www.bizjournals.com/austin/blog/morning_call/2012/03/council-greenlights-86m-for-apple.html

Council greenlights $8.6M for Apple

Austin Business Journal
Date: Friday, March 23, 2012, 6:40am CDT

The Austin City Council approved Thursday night an $8.6 million economic development grant for Apple Inc. to double its Austin footprint and create 3,600 jobs.

[ahealy]

Originally Posted by KevinFromTexas

By the way, something I forgot to mention the other day. Gensler is working on designing the Green site towers. Gensler is also designing the Grand Hotel/Manchester Hotel. They're also doing the Block 51 office tower.

http://www.bizjournals.com/austin/blog/morning_call/2012/03/council-greenlights-86m-for-apple.html

I am no longer worried. I rest my bitching.

[JoninATX]

I personally doubt that will be the final rendering, they may just be getting idea's out there to see which concept would look best. So I'm not holding my breath on this lastest design.

[ahealy]

Originally Posted by JoninATX

I personally doubt thats the final rendering.

Yeah, with the way this whole project has been...I won't believe anything until I see it in person. I'm still very excited to see 2nd street go to seaholm. We'll see things start this summer.

[Jdawgboy]

Oh thank goodness for that I really like the Manchester Hotel, so I agree that gives us hope that these buildings will look much nicer and hopefully sleeker.

[Jdawgboy]

This is pretty cool...

http://www.bizjournals.com/austin/news/2012/03/26/austin-no-2-for-urban-population-growth.html

[Dariusb]

Austin is looking very good!

[actham]

Does anybody subscribe to InFactDaily.com? I get their headlines but not the stories. Today one of the headlines was "Planning Commission denies site plan extension for controversial building"...I'm wondering what controversial building was denied. Any thoughts?

[LoneStarMike]

If you go to infactdaily.com and click on "news" it will still give you the first couple of sentences of the story.

Calling the existing site plan “poisoned,” the Planning Commission denied a site plan extension for a proposed Reagan National building on I-35 and Woodland. Neighbor Patrick Roeder brought an appeal of the administratively-approved site plan to the commission.

[BevoLJ]

Where is I-35 and Woodland? Is it up north?

Could they have been talking about Woodward by St Eds?

[LoneStarMike]

Look at a map showing I-35 between Riverside & Ben White. Woodland Avenue is about halfway between Riverside and Oltorf. Woodward Street is further south between Oltorf & Ben White (closer to Ben White.)