An artist’s depiction of Ashbel Smith Hall’s implosion. Photo by James Rambin.
It couldn’t have happened to a nicer building, but it appears downtown Austin’s first implosion in more than 11 years will take place at Block 71’s Ashbel Smith Hall tower sometime this spring.
We’ve been hunting for answers since December of last year, when various permits were filed with the city for demolition at the site, a 1.75-acre downtown block owned by the University of Texas and bordered by West Seventh, Colorado, West Sixth and Lavaca Streets. In fact, teardown is already somewhat underway — the parking garage at the location is pretty much gone.
Demo on the parking garage at Block 71 #ATXrising pic.twitter.com/2SZcdAO4Lw
— Justin Baudoin (@justinbaudoin) February 9, 2018
But today, at long last, we’ve received official confirmation regarding the brief future of Ashbel Smith Hall from DPR Construction, the builders working with developer Trammell Crow to transform the block into downtown’s next grand mixed-use office and food hall project:
“In order to significantly lessen the impact the redevelopment of Block 71 will have on its neighbors and downtown in general, we are going to demolish the existing 10-story building through a tried and true method of implosion, which is designed to contain the building’s debris within the site. We’re finalizing the plans for the implosion, which include a number of redundant safety measures, and we’re eager to share those plans with our neighbors soon.”
— Andrea Weisheimer, Project Executive, DPR Construction
If all goes according to plan, this will be downtown’s first implosion since the demolition of the ill-fated shell of the Intel building in 2007, so it makes sense for Weisheimer to strongly emphasize safety measures in her statement — this sort of thing doesn’t happen every day, after all.
The northern elevation of Ashbel Smith Hall at Block 71. Photo by James Rambin.
The city filings from back in December regarding the demolition seem to imply a target date of March 25 for the implosion of the 10-story building, originally built in 1974 as administrative offices for employees of the University of Texas System.
But DPR isn’t ready to confirm that exact date just yet — “late March” is the best they can do for now. Still, you probably want to block that date out on your calendar, just in case. I’ve never been more excited for anything in my life.
Latest Downtown Austin Condos For Sale
-
$310,000
800 Brazos ST #1002
Austin, TX -
$449,000
54 Rainey ST #916
Austin, TX -
$260,000
800 Brazos ST #1311
Austin, TX -
$960,000
210 Lavaca ST #2404
Austin, TX -
$776,000
301 West AVE #3904
Austin, TX -
$995,000
98 San Jacinto BLVD #806
Austin, TX -
$1,599,900
222 West AVE #2312
Austin, TX -
$4,095,000
210 Lavaca ST #3302
Austin, TX -
$970,000
301 West AVE #1208
Austin, TX -
$485,000
54 Rainey ST #607
Austin, TX -
$495,000
54 Rainey ST #421
Austin, TX -
$625,000
360 Nueces ST #1602
Austin, TX -
$560,773
70 Rainey ST #1809
Austin, TX -
$621,583
70 Rainey ST #2405
Austin, TX -
$849,000
MLS # 6335242
Austin, TX -
$748,200
70 Rainey ST #1409
Austin, TX -
$499,600
360 Nueces ST #4108
Austin, TX -
$2,995,000
210 Lavaca ST #2505
Austin, TX -
$475,000
360 Nueces ST #2610
Austin, TX -
$1,849,000
200 CONGRESS AVE #18F
Austin, TX -
$339,000
54 Rainey ST #917
Austin, TX -
$1,050,000
360 Nueces ST #2211
Austin, TX -
$1,100,000
311 W 5th ST #803
Austin, TX -
$1,575,000
200 Congress AVE #14D
Austin, TX -
$1,390,000
501 West AVE #1501
Austin, TX
-
$310,000Lot Size30,057 sqft
Home Size802 sq ft
Beds1 bed
Baths1 bath
-
$449,000Lot Size218 sqft
Home Size852 sq ft
Beds1 bed
Baths1 bath
-
$260,000Lot Size175 sqft
Home Size622 sq ft
Beds1 bed
Baths1 bath
-
$960,000Lot Size88 sqft
Home Size1,068 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$776,000Lot Size1.75 ac
Home Size999 sq ft
Beds1 bed
Baths1 bath
-
$995,000Lot Size305 sqft
Home Size1,271 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$1,599,900Lot Size393 sqft
Home Size2,143 sq ft
Beds3 beds
Baths3 baths
-
$4,095,000Lot Size262 sqft
Home Size3,482 sq ft
Beds3 beds
Baths4 baths
-
$970,000Lot SizeN/A
Home Size1,325 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$485,000Lot Size305 sqft
Home Size1,164 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$495,000Lot Size305 sqft
Home Size1,164 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$625,000Lot Size131 sqft
Home Size1,059 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$560,773Lot SizeN/A
Home Size718 sq ft
Beds1 bed
Baths1 bath
-
$621,583Lot SizeN/A
Home Size837 sq ft
Beds1 bed
Baths1 bath
-
$849,000Lot Size262 sqft
Home Size1,060 sq ft
Beds1 bed
Baths1 bath
-
$748,200Lot SizeN/A
Home Size1,128 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$499,600Lot Size88 sqft
Home Size801 sq ft
Beds1 bed
Baths1 bath
-
$2,995,000Lot SizeN/A
Home Size2,871 sq ft
Beds3 beds
Baths4 baths
-
$475,000Lot Size88 sqft
Home Size770 sq ft
Beds1 bed
Baths1 bath
-
$1,849,000Lot Size131 sqft
Home Size1,926 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths3 baths
-
$339,000Lot Size218 sqft
Home Size865 sq ft
Beds1 bed
Baths1 bath
-
$1,050,000Lot Size175 sqft
Home Size1,280 sq ft
Beds1 bed
Baths2 baths
-
$1,100,000Lot Size305 sqft
Home Size2,361 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths3 baths
-
$1,575,000Lot Size131 sqft
Home Size1,609 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$1,390,000Lot SizeN/A
Home Size1,587 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
