Michael Dell?

[Armybrat]

I'm well aware of his generous support of worthy charitable institutions that benefit a wide spectrum of Austin(ites). Many kudos to him and his wife for being great leaders here.

But does anyone here know if he's invested in the local real estate scene?

In particular, there are a lot of attractive downtown venues that I would love to invest in/own if I were a billionaire.

Just random nosy thinking.

[BevoLJ]

Not really. He did fund a huge part of the Long Center, but I don't think he does much if any real estate type investing of the sort I think you are talking about. He and his wife give a lot to the arts and other things but when it comes to investments he seems to stick to what he knows. Although I did see this week he is buying a radio station in Seattle. That struck me as odd for him. lol.

[hookem]

He's invested in some New York real estate. And of course he bought the land in NW Hills that became the JCC. That was sort of a speculative purchase when he bought it.

I understand what you mean, though. I always imagine if I were a billionaire in Austin, that I'd want to fund or organize the development of some skyline-changing tower.

[Spaceman]

Dealing with the endless planning boards(tovo, etc) would dampen my desire to build anything in Austin...Has anyone gone to a planning meeting and seen Mary Arnold in action..I haven't been to one but I hear she is a trip..Very radical no-growther...