AUSTIN | Projects & Construction II

[BevoLJ]

It looks taller to me too. Did Kevin get an email from them? I think he might have said something about a height to a roof and another height to something above the roof that we were thinking is that top thing. So that would be the updated height from that email, but I'm not sure I remember where he said that. However, it should be able to tell from whatever they said if they made it higher or not.

Edit: Nevermind. Here is the post from Kevin I was thinking of...

Originally Posted by KevinFromTexas

Well that's an improvement. I like it.

Yes, I was working on getting the height of the building.

This was from someone with White Lodging.

I'm wondering if they're planning a reduction in the number of rooms. It's hard to count the number of floors in those renderings, but the height doesn't seem too different from the other design. Notice that they chopped off the north side portion of the tower so that it's no longer an 'L' shaped tower.

[icerafting]

Originally Posted by ahealy

That's better..The glass looks much nicer than that horrible tan crap from before.I really like the semi green roof on the base section. More buildings need that in Austin

yupp, look better like that

[The ATX]

Construction should start in a month on an 18-story apartment tower at 3rd and Brazos. Too bad it's only 18 floors because ther is no CVC height restriction.

http://www.bizjournals.com/austin/print-...artment-tower-to-rise-downtown-soon.html


Apartment tower to rise downtown soon


Austin Business Journal by Cody Lyon , ABJ Staff
Date: Friday, September 16, 2011, 5:00am CDT


Riverside Resources LLC is poised to build an 18-story apartment tower in downtown Austin at the northwest corner of Third and Brazos streets.

The former Whitley Printing Co. building will be razed in about a month, according to real estate sources, and will be replaced with:

• 275 multifamily units

• 10,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial space that could be used for office or retail

• and a 6,000-square-foot restaurant

[wwmiv]

Originally Posted by Hill Country

Construction should start in a month on an 18-story apartment tower at 3rd and Brazos. Too bad it's only 18 floors because ther is no CVC height restriction.

http://www.bizjournals.com/austin/print-...artment-tower-to-rise-downtown-soon.html


Apartment tower to rise downtown soon


Austin Business Journal by Cody Lyon , ABJ Staff
Date: Friday, September 16, 2011, 5:00am CDT


Riverside Resources LLC is poised to build an 18-story apartment tower in downtown Austin at the northwest corner of Third and Brazos streets.

The former Whitley Printing Co. building will be razed in about a month, according to real estate sources, and will be replaced with:

• 275 multifamily units

• 10,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial space that could be used for office or retail

• and a 6,000-square-foot restaurant

The building should be around 200', which isn't bad at all. Density is what matters most, not necessarily height. 275 multi-family units is good.

[P3FE]

Originally Posted by wwmiv

http://downtownaustinblog.org/2011/04/19...trict-getting-a-new-neighbor/#more-11073

...so perhaps this is it. That little pocket of downtown (3rd and San Jacinto) is really going to have some dense construction activity with the new Hyatt going up at the same time across the street. I wonder if the two construction groups will have to coordinate crane placements.

[ahealy]

Awesome. It's great to see more apartments go up....I am hoping that render is just a rough sketch though...it isn't exactly striking.

[Jdawgboy]

Originally Posted by wwmiv

The building should be around 200', which isn't bad at all. Density is what matters most, not necessarily height. 275 multi-family units is good.

I beg to differ, Austin does not have many unlimited hight areas in Downtown, putting such a short tower on a block that is unhindered IMO is just not the right way to go. I don't care if we get 18 floor buildings but put them in restricted height areas.

[wwmiv]

Originally Posted by Jdawgboy

I beg to differ, Austin does not have many unlimited hight areas in Downtown, putting such a short tower on a block that is unhindered IMO is just not the right way to go. I don't care if we get 18 floor buildings but put them in restricted height areas.

Height restrictions are not set in stone. They'll change eventually.

[The ATX]

Unfortunately height restrictions due to the CVC are not so likely to change. The state legislature which typically dislikes Austin would not allow it.

[ahealy]

Originally Posted by Jdawgboy

I beg to differ, Austin does not have many unlimited hight areas in Downtown, putting such a short tower on a block that is unhindered IMO is just not the right way to go. I don't care if we get 18 floor buildings but put them in restricted height areas.

I am more of a density fan, than a height fan (sometimes). I'll say it again though...this building could use a touch of something to make it pop!

[wwmiv]

Originally Posted by Hill Country

Unfortunately height restrictions due to the CVC are not so likely to change. The state legislature which typically dislikes Austin would not allow it.

True, but other restrictions are not static.

[BevoLJ]

The biggest roadblock to our CVC was all ways Lady Bird, especially when it came to the CVC from UT. I had the utmost respect for our First Lady, but in the case regarding our CVC I felt she was wrong. I really don't think the state legistlature would be to much of a problem if Austin was to want to do something about the CVC. Just tell the clowns in our legislature that a bunch of hippie NIMBYs are opposed to getting rid of the CVC and they would have to oppose the hippies for no other reason than to annoy them.

[Jdawgboy]

LOL, funny thing is if the state goes through with building up the Capital District, there could be some fairly tall towers within a block or two of the Capital. The city really won't have a say in that respect if the state allows a 500 footer to go up, though I would assume they have figured that into the plan.

[M1EK]

Originally Posted by wwmiv

The building should be around 200', which isn't bad at all. Density is what matters most, not necessarily height. 275 multi-family units is good.

Density is a function of height. Repeating this claim of yours simply acts as an apology for limiting density itself.

[wwmiv]

Originally Posted by M1EK

Density is a function of height. Repeating this claim of yours simply acts as an apology for limiting density itself.

... As a rough guideline, yes, but not in all cases. Just because something is tall does not mean that it is going to house more people than a building half its height (even on the same footprint). It depends on the targeted demographic (which dovetails quite nicely with unit size).

For most downtown lots that are ripe for residential redevelopment, developers have three basic choices at the moment:

A) Develop a modest project now with guaranteed profits. This choice is logical at the moment. The market can absorb the new space easily and the funds necessary are easy-esque to find.

B) Develop a large project later. The funds necessary for such a large project just aren't there at the moment. These kinds of projects just aren't ripe. We may not end up with a damn thing.

C) Develop a small project now. Easy to accomplish.


When it comes down to it, I'm for whatever density can be accomplished under the circumstances. At this moment in time, A is the most logical option. I'm fine with it. It is dense. It meets a minimum threshold for me. Remember, zoning laws can be changed. This isn't the absolute last lot here for redevelopment into dense living.

[shakman]

Originally Posted by M1EK

Density is a function of height. Repeating this claim of yours simply acts as an apology for limiting density itself.

Density is a function of floor-area-ratio (FAR); not neccessarily height.

[Jdawgboy]

Originally Posted by shakman

Density is a function of floor-area-ratio (FAR); not neccessarily height.

That is true but, we are tired of huge blocky buildings that take up way to much space. That 18 floor building takes a whole half a block, cut it in half we could have a 36 floor building instead with more space for future development.

[P3FE]

Luckily the paper company warehouse does not take up the entire half block, only 2/3 of a half block (The ABJ shows a decent graphic of this). So, it could be possible that at some time in the future a very very slender, yet not height restricted building, could go in at the extreme southeast corner next to the planned apartments. We may yet get a tower on every block of downtown.

EDIT: I apologize folks. I just double checked and clearly the plans call for the building to extend from Brazos to San Jacinto. The ABJ photo steered me wrong. That slender point tower will have to stay a fantasy.

[KevinFromTexas]

This article talks about the Whitley printing site tower, but also the Gables apartment tower and the tower at 5th & Bowie.

According to this, the occupancy rate for apartments in Austin citywide and in downtown is 96 percent. It says there are 10,000 to 12,000 new apartments planned for Austin.

http://www.statesman.com/business/downto...ower-to-replace-old-whitley-1874060.html

Downtown Austin apartment tower to replace old Whitley building

By Shonda Novak
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Updated: 10:47 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 22, 2011
Published: 7:47 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 22, 2011

Demolition work has begun on the former Whitley Printing Co. building at East Third and Brazos streets in downtown Austin to make way for a 16-story tower with 277 luxury apartments planned by Austin-based Riverside Resources.

In addition, Endeavor Real Estate Group said Thursday that it plans to build 350 apartments in a previously announced tower planned for West Fifth and Bowie streets. Jamil Alam, a principal with Austin-based Endeavor, said the building will have about 34 stories and will include 45,000 square feet of office space.

Another downtown apartment project, this one by Gables Residential, is expected to start in early 2012. Gables Park Plaza II would be adjacent to the Gables Park Plaza project at North Lamar Boulevard and West Cesar Chavez Street.

[N90]

Originally Posted by KevinFromTexas

It says there are 10,000 to 12,000 new apartments planned for Austin

Holy mother of smokes batman. Austin's skyline looks to be giving/wanting to give Miami a run for its money on who has/will have more construction cranes in the next few years.