Citing a need for better use of space and traffic improvements, the City of Austin recently began a search for a consultant to help produce a master plan for the Zilker Botanical Garden . Remarkably, the request for proposals filed by the city noted that there has never been an approved master plan for the park. In 1962,…
Austin City Council Approves Delivery Robot Pilot Program
A resolution adopted unanimously this morning at a meeting of the Austin City Council will allow the deployment of personal delivery robotic devices, or PDDs , on city sidewalks. The resolution authorizes the creation of a pilot program by the Austin Transportation Department to partner with private tech companies and PDD operators to test the feasibility of battery-powered…
Two-Way Conversion on Colorado Street Hits a Speed Bump
Call me a nutty guy, but for my money, there’s no greater production house for entertainment than local government. Besides being free, which is nice, the spectacle delivers pretty much the same ballgame as national or state politics sans the escalating moral depravity you’ll often find as you scope up to those levels. Just like…
A First Look at the Line Hotel, Reinventing Austin’s Midcentury Downtown Radisson
I’ve been waiting patiently for word on the Line Hotel project remodeling the downtown Radisson at Congress Avenue and Cesar Chavez Street for the better part of a year. I’m so patient, in fact, that I mocked up some terrible renderings of what the hotel project might look like post-remodel. With these new promotional renderings from the Line Hotel’s parent…
Central Austin Development Roundup: What’s Happening Downtown?
It’s been a fun couple of weeks for downtown Austin, with shiny renderings of new towers and other project details practically falling from the sky. Let’s take a few minutes to round up the items on the top of our list — you know, all the fun ones. 600 Guadalupe Tower Renderings for this tower…
For You, For Austin: A Convention Center History, Part One
Have you noticed the Austin Convention Center? You know, that building over on Cesar Chavez and Trinity Streets? Oh, and also over on Red River, Second, Third, Fourth, and Neches Streets? Don’t you think it’s been looking a little…small lately? Certainly wouldn’t be among my top five reactions, but you could be forgiven for thinking…