AUSTIN | Project Updates Thread Part II

[kingkirbythe....]

Reclaiming East Austin’s Defunct Holly Street Power Plant Starts Now

https://austin.towers.net/reclaiming-east-austins-defunct-holly-street-power-plant-starts-now/

The long saga of decommissioning East Austin’s controversial Holly Street Power Plant shifts into a new gear this month, only a short 14 years after the facility’s 2007 closure. The plant generated electricity for 47 years at the eastern shore of Lady Bird Lake in the Holly neighborhood, but ceased operations after years of protest by nearby residents over its environmental impact — now, after more than a decade of planning efforts, the site hosted a groundbreaking event last weekend commemorating the start of phase one improvements to the shoreline in this area. For a project that’s often made us feel like the whole city’s moving in slow motion, it’s a good start

[KevinFromTexas]

Originally Posted by StoOgE

That tower is due for a full remodel soon. Its a prime location and its upstairs ballroom is probably the best view of DT in the city but its SUPER dated.

I could see something like the LINE happening in that spot in the next 10 years once more of the South Shore vision kicks in and that area becomes a tad more desirable to stay in

I think it was last updated in 2009. That's when it was painted orange. For years it was white. I never knew it to be a different color until then.

https://newsroom.hyatt.com/2009-01-14-HY...ETION-OF-MULTI-MILLION-DOLLAR-RENOVATION

[StoOgE]

Originally Posted by kingkirbythe....

Reclaiming East Austin’s Defunct Holly Street Power Plant Starts Now

https://austin.towers.net/reclaiming-east-austins-defunct-holly-street-power-plant-starts-now/

The long saga of decommissioning East Austin’s controversial Holly Street Power Plant shifts into a new gear this month, only a short 14 years after the facility’s 2007 closure. The plant generated electricity for 47 years at the eastern shore of Lady Bird Lake in the Holly neighborhood, but ceased operations after years of protest by nearby residents over its environmental impact — now, after more than a decade of planning efforts, the site hosted a groundbreaking event last weekend commemorating the start of phase one improvements to the shoreline in this area. For a project that’s often made us feel like the whole city’s moving in slow motion, it’s a good start

Thank god - that part of the lake is always a little scary - though I will miss the little graffiti wall on the current trail.

[Mopacs]

Originally Posted by KevinFromTexas

The Hyatt Regency on Town Lake appears to be getting another paint job. White again.

That seems to be a trend throughout the city. Not just with high-rises but shopping centers as well. All are getting a white coat of paint. With some buildings it's an improvement and others not so much.

[Sigaven]

Originally Posted by KevinFromTexas

I think it was last updated in 2009. That's when it was painted orange. For years it was white. I never knew it to be a different color until then.

https://newsroom.hyatt.com/2009-01-14-HY...ETION-OF-MULTI-MILLION-DOLLAR-RENOVATION

Weird to paint it that color in 2009...orange/fall colors were a their peak 2005-2006ish. I would have expected dark gray and robin egg blue by 2009-2010. Glad it's going white again...the orange has been dated-looking since 2010.

[kingkirbythe....]

Can Austin Take Back the Drag?

https://austin.towers.net/can-austin-take-back-the-drag/

West Campus isn’t downtown Austin, but downtown Austin could learn a thing or two from West Campus. This student-populated neighborhood directly west of the University of Texas is sort of like the city’s own little laboratory for urban design, and though it’s generally outside this blog’s area of coverage, the vertical expansion of this district over the course of the last decade or so is truly remarkable even by Austin standards. After the 2004 approval of the University Neighborhood Overlay (UNO), a plan providing new construction in the district with additional density and height beyond typical zoning in exchange for affordable housing and other benefits, the neighborhood is essentially unrecognizable from its previous life.

[Atom_Mirny]

"Initial plans for the transformation of the "Statesman PUD" site that could bring a new landmark development to the south shore of Lady Bird Lake are progressing and could be finalized in early 2022.

...the new campus would feature towers ranging in height from 150 feet on the property's eastern edge to more than 500 feet off South Congress. That new skyline would be made up of two office buildings surrounded by residential towers with a lakefront view, one including a hotel.

By use, the proposal is broken up into 1.65 million square feet of residential space, 1.5 million square feet of office space, a 220,000-square-foot hotel and 150,000 square feet of mixed commercial space."

https://communityimpact.com/austin/centr...t-in-downtown-austin-moves-on-into-2022/

[Echostatic]

Arguably the biggest news:

The high-rise towers are envisioned with ground-floor stores or restaurants and walkable spaces between the buildings, adjacent streets and the waterfront trail. And almost all, 95%, of the property's new parking would be placed underground. Jerry Rusthoven, assistant director of the city housing department, cited the lack of above-ground parking as "a very huge get" from the city's PUD negotiations.

[drummer]

I like it! I like that there is a grid coming to the area and I like that they saved a chunk of park space by for the "unofficial bat viewing area" at the Congress Ave. bridge. I do think the intersection at Barton Springs is a little wonky, but I can get over that pretty easily.

[SproutingTowers]

Another link about the Waterfront project.

https://www.virtualbx.com/construction-p...lding-into-mixed-use-waterfront-project/

[Echostatic]

The new massings are more detailed, and the hotel component has switched buildings. But the building heights are unchanged from the original 2019 plans. The square footage is slightly refined which reflects the new designs.

Old:


New:

[austlar1]

Will the new street grid and green spaces adjacent to Town Lake remain private property or will the city have jurisdiction over the outdoor areas?

[Dariusb]

At the rate the city is building more vertically, it'll become the densest city in the state.

[drummer]

Originally Posted by Dariusb

At the rate the city is building more vertically, it'll become the densest city in the state.

It definitely seems to be heading in that direction.

[We vs us]

Here's a fun little timelapse on the Downtown Austin Alliance site. Shows all the stuff we should expect to see built in the next decade (that we know of).

https://downtownaustin.com/authorization/#where-we-serve

EDIT: somewhat predictably, we know about a lot of other planned projects that didn't make it into this timelapse.

[drummer]

That's pretty cool to see like that. Again, still begging to have some CVCs removed that will be pointless if/when I-35 hopefully/inevitably/just-may-happen-but-we'll-see get the cap and stitch solution.

[chinchaaa]

Still nothing on the Post Office block! I really hope we get something absolutely amazing there.

[We vs us]

Originally Posted by chinchaaa

Still nothing on the Post Office block! I really hope we get something absolutely amazing there.

It defies logic, honestly. We're getting 600+ ft buildings announced on the reg, and still nothing but total silence about that block. Not even a hint.

[migol24]

I've been staying in Brooklyn for the whole month. This is the view from my room overlooking downtown Brooklyn. This is the kind of tower I would like to see in Austin as a signature tower, especially on that post office block.

If you scroll down on this page, you'll get a good rendering of it.

https://skyscraperpage.com/forum/showthread.php?t=212048&page=10

Edit:

Oh right, I forgot. I can't post photos from Instagram on this page for whatever reason. Anyways, here's the link to my Instagram.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CXmQjYlFcFAaXlZL1gfjE4_QSS-Ai_Zj9N5kEY0/?utm_medium=copy_link

[the Genral]

Good Lord Brooklyn has changed so much since I've been there back in the 70s and 80s. Burnt out buildings block after block except where the Mafia reigned. I'd loved to go back and visit but I'm pretty sure everyone I knew there are gone.