Image: City of Austin
The community engagement process for the design of a new downtown electrical substation at 55 East Avenue on the edge of the Rainey Street District has reached a conclusion — of the three themes put to a vote a couple of months ago, Austin Energy announced yesterday that the “modern” design option for screening the facility eventually won out. Here’s what that looks like, if you don’t recall:
A board from Austin Energy’s substation presentation showing the “Modern” design option, which eventually won out over other options in the engagement process. Image: City of Austin
We also had an opportunity to vote on a name, and despite the bold submissions of Sparky McSparkface, Volty McVoltface, and Subby McSubstation, the simple, yet sufficiently-descriptive Rainey Street Substation took the gold. Austinites taking the survey also submitted landscaping preferences, which included some interesting options like artificial boulders and succulents — but in the end, natural boulders and landscaping with native grasses and wildflowers were the clerar winners. Per Austin Energy, finalized renderings of the substation and its chosen design features will come out by the end of the summer.
Survey respondents went with the natural boulders and native plants presented in these landscaping options. Image: City of Austin
The modern design is attractive and likely the best choice of the three options presented — the system works, folks! — but the most important feature of this substation will be its improvements to the sidewalk and streetscape of East Avenue, a section of the Rainey Street District currently rivaling the actual Rainey Street itself for upcoming development and future potential, not to mention its own access and mobility concerns.
If we seem weirdly invested in this seemingly mundane piece of infrastructure, it’s because the conditions that led to its placement at 55 East Avenue didn’t anticipate the current growth patterns of the neighborhood — the city bought the site in 1999 — and now the downtown substation’s design must do its best to not completely screw up the street-level experience in a small corridor with multiple hotels and at least one condo tower in the works on either side of it.
Image: Austin Energy
By improving the sidewalks, and screening the station with some “colorful metal elements” alongside other landscaping, seating, and so on, the intent is to elevate a traditionally ugly facility to something that arguably improves the district, or at least doesn’t do anything to seriously harm it. Some of the survey responses highlighted in Austin Energy’s report make it very clear this is a priority for residents, with at least one person politely begging the city not to “make it an ugly eyesore like the Seaholm substation.” The pressure’s on!
We’d much rather have you folks reading our site instead of NextDoor, which as far as we can tell is a social network designed to make you hate your neighbors. Image: City of Austin
Not to brag, but this very site shows up quite a bit in the community engagement report — turns out the forms embedded in our two articles on the substation captured more than 200 survey responses alone, meaning our readers had a significant influence on which design eventually won the day. Did you know you could actively shape the future of downtown just by reading our blog? Just one more reason to subscribe to our newsletter!
Rainey Street Condos For Sale
-
$530,000
54 Rainey ST #913
Austin, TX -
$363,000
603 Davis ST #1106
Austin, TX -
$714,900
603 Davis ST #1709
Austin, TX -
$599,000
54 Rainey ST #312
Austin, TX -
$355,000
54 Rainey ST #603
Austin, TX -
$1,632,500
70 Rainey ST #2604
Austin, TX -
$540,882
70 Rainey ST #2703
Austin, TX -
$1,828,570
70 Rainey ST #2506
Austin, TX -
$450,000
40 N Interstate 35 #2C2
Austin, TX -
$1,259,242
70 Rainey ST #1401
Austin, TX -
$675,000
54 Rainey ST #822
Austin, TX -
$2,225,000
70 Rainey ST #2601
Austin, TX -
$444,000
40 N Interstate 35 #6B2
Austin, TX -
$775,000
603 Davis ST #1702
Austin, TX -
$1,575,000
603 Davis ST #2101
Austin, TX -
$819,774
603 Davis ST #2002
Austin, TX -
$865,000
54 Rainey ST #1206
Austin, TX -
$467,000
40 N Interstate 35 #5D4
Austin, TX -
$489,000
54 Rainey ST #607
Austin, TX -
$409,900
603 Davis ST #1708
Austin, TX -
$456,000
40 N Interstate 35 #2D1
Austin, TX -
$575,000
603 Davis ST #603
Austin, TX -
$465,000
40 N Interstate 35 #4A4
Austin, TX -
$629,000
603 Davis ST #1009
Austin, TX
-
$530,000Lot Size305 sqft
Home Size1,164 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$363,000Lot Size131 sqft
Home Size809 sq ft
Beds1 bed
Baths1 bath
-
$714,900Lot Size262 sqft
Home Size1,286 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$599,000Lot Size305 sqft
Home Size1,164 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$355,000Lot Size218 sqft
Home Size865 sq ft
Beds1 bed
Baths1 bath
-
$1,632,500Lot SizeN/A
Home Size1,743 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths3 baths
-
$540,882Lot SizeN/A
Home Size663 sq ft
Beds1 bed
Baths1 bath
-
$1,828,570Lot SizeN/A
Home Size2,179 sq ft
Beds3 beds
Baths3 baths
-
$450,000Lot Size1,133 sqft
Home Size1,459 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$1,259,242Lot SizeN/A
Home Size1,697 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$675,000Lot Size305 sqft
Home Size1,212 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$2,225,000Lot SizeN/A
Home Size2,851 sq ft
Beds3 beds
Baths3 baths
-
$444,000Lot Size1,133 sqft
Home Size1,459 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$775,000Lot Size305 sqft
Home Size1,597 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$1,575,000Lot Size305 sqft
Home Size2,101 sq ft
Beds3 beds
Baths3 baths
-
$819,774Lot Size304 sqft
Home Size1,597 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$865,000Lot Size349 sqft
Home Size1,341 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$467,000Lot Size1,046 sqft
Home Size1,360 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$489,000Lot Size305 sqft
Home Size1,164 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$409,900Lot Size175 sqft
Home Size923 sq ft
Beds1 bed
Baths1 bath
-
$456,000Lot SizeN/A
Home Size1,533 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$575,000Lot Size218 sqft
Home Size1,175 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$465,000Lot Size959 sqft
Home Size1,234 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$629,000Lot Size262 sqft
Home Size1,286 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
