Per reporting at KXAN, ACC will be presenting a lot of new material to the city council during the regular meeting on Sept 17. Using Gensler and another consulting firm, ACC has revised/narrowed its options for expansion greatly, and developed two very specific proposals to put in front of council.
The reporting from KXAN is here:
https://www.kxan.com/news/local/aust...nter-expansion
The PDF is here, and while the juiciest stuff starts on page 130, almost all of it is worth skimming.
https://www.kxan.com/wp-content/uplo...nsion-memo.pdf
As the report indicates, the western expansion is still the only feasible way to go, but notes that private development has not paused while the city has determined which way to go, and that resultantly the available western footprint has reduced slightly.
Lots of juicy tidbits:
-- there is another hotel planned next to the new Marriott in the half block north, where Michelada's is. No room count or operator noted at this time
-- Block 16 is doable (and presumably a go) no matter which option the city chooses.
-- The Block 16 developers have been quite active with the ACC expansion, and have been trying to assemble the rest of the parcels on the western expansion side to help facilitate the whole thing.
-- the easternmost Railyard tract is still considered part of the expansion footprint, and neither of the ACC development scenarios assumes a tower will be built there. Is Karlin completely out of the picture? regardless, the master plan says this: "
As this master plan update nears completion, a partnershiphas been struck with all land owners between Second Street, Trinity Street, Fourth Street and San Jacinto. This is an important step in moving forward with the West expansion."
-- the Gensler planning assumes the Blue Line will be built down Trinity, and for either of its scenarios to work, needs the Blue Line to stay on the surface. Also, "Trinity Street between Second and Fourth Streets should be developed as a multi-modal transit hub for the convention district and southeast part of downtown, accommodating rail, busses and taxi services."
-- in both scenarios, the city greatly reduces the ACC footprint; claws black several parcels for towers/private development; and assembles the equivalent of a subterranean superblock straddling Trinity -- in one case reserving the space for freight/back of house support and in the other reserving it for a below grade exhibit hall.
-- The two options are titled either "Halls Up" or "Halls Down." Halls Up puts new exhibit halls on multiple levels above street level (up to 8 floors). Halls Down builds a huge exhibit hall below grade, straddling Trinity.
-- Both have pluses and minuses, but in both cases, the ACC footprint will shrink dramatically, and will make room for several more towers in that part of downtown.
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