The annual PARK(ing) Day event creates public space in downtown Austin by converting, for a day, many of Congress Avenue’s street parking spaces into temporary parklets. It’s a fun time, but perhaps more importantly, the event serves as a reminder of how much space we’ve sacrificed to parking in the public realm of our most famous street…
Downtown Austin’s Republic Office Tower Gets a Surprise Height Increase
New documents submitted to the City of Austin’s Design Commission bring us an unexpected, but welcome piece of news — the planned downtown office tower known as The Republic will be significantly taller than we thought. The tower’s new application to the Downtown Density Bonus Program, submitted by developers Lincoln Property Company and Phoenix Property Company as…
Austin’s Imaginary Taco Bell Subway System Might Be Worth Digging Into
The mad geniuses at Reddit’s r/SubwaySubway page — a community that, somewhat inexplicably, creates imaginary maps of subway systems for different cities where every Subway sandwich franchise represents a station — have set their sights on Austin. But this time, creator Epicapabilities used the city’s Taco Bell locations, rather than Subway restaurants, to represent the…
Here’s a Snazzy New Look at Downtown Austin’s 5th & Brazos Tower
It’s been less than a week since we found out exactly what we’re looking forward to at the northeast corner of Fifth and Brazos Streets, but when it rains, it pours. Thanks to bKL Architecture, the folks behind the design of the 32-story mixed-use tower set to bring two hotels and 274 apartment units downtown, we’ve got a better…
Let’s Catch Up on the Frank & Angie’s Residential Tower Plan
Austin’s burger enthusiasts briefly entered a state of panic today due to circling rumors that longtime West Sixth Street burger joint Hut’s Hamburgers would close up shop next year. According to the owner, Mike Hutchinson, that’s not the case — but Frank & Angie’s, the pizzeria he also owns directly behind Hut’s at 508 West…
The Huston Apartment Project Headed to a Controversial East Austin Site
You wouldn’t necessarily peg the 2.84-acre plot on the east side of Interstate 35 between East 11th and 12th Streets as a fierce battleground for the soul of Austin. That’s not to say that the swooping pink roofline of the former Lucky Lady Bingo Hall isn’t charming, but at the end of the day it’s…