The Schlotzsky’s sandwich shop currently standing at 218 South Lamar Boulevard. Fun fact, legendary local architecture firm Black + Vernooy designed the adaptations to the former Kash-Karry / Fresh Plus grocery store building that became the brand’s flagship location and training facility in 1995. Image: Google Maps
Austin-gone-international sandwich chain Schlotzsky’s has had its ups and downs. First opened in 1971 at the current site of Amy’s Ice Cream at 1301 South Congress Avenue, the growth of the brand through the 1990s eventually saw the relocation of its flagship outlet to a two-story former grocery store at 218 South Lamar Boulevard, which also housed the company’s training and bakery facilities.
A 2004 bankruptcy and 2010s turnaround, fueled at least in part by Cinnabon of all things, kept the company interesting over the last 15 years — but private equity demands growth, and thus Schlotzsky’s is currently neck-deep in the rollout of its new “Austin Eatery” rebranding, which hilariously leans on the outfit’s Austin origins to “keep it weird” in hotspots such as suburban Atlanta with a revamped menu of painfully millennial-targeted Hail Marys like sliders, tacos, and flatbreads.
Did you know Schlotzsky’s opened a location in Moscow in 2014? Unclear if it’s still open, but this review is too funny not to post.
In what must be completely unrelated news, the 218 South Lamar Boulevard location is closing, soon to be replaced by a seven-story office project with ground-floor retail space from Generational Commercial Properties. Here’s the building, as seen in recent city development filings and designed by the locals at Runa Workshop:
A northern elevation of the 218 South Lamar office building, meaning this is the side facing the Zach Theatre. Click for a larger view. Image: Runa Workshop / Generational Commercial Properties
A southern elevation of the 218 South Lamar office building, as seen from Toomey Road. Click for a larger view. Image: Runa Workshop / Generational Commercial Properties
An eastern elevation of the 218 South Lamar office building, this time seen from the perspective of South Lamar Boulevard itself. Click for a larger view. Image: Runa Workshop / Generational Commercial Properties
Finally, a western elevation of the 218 South Lamar office building, which will mostly face the adjacent theatre’s back of house facilities. Click for a larger view. Image: Runa Workshop / Generational Commercial Properties
These drawings are nice and give us a decent understanding of the building, but their flat presentation doesn’t really give you a great idea of its full geometry — judging by the overhead view of site plan filings for the project, the architecture features more diagonals than you’d be able to tell from the images above:
A floor plan of the 218 South Lamar office project’s seventh floor (its top level), which shows the general layout of the building and its diagonal masses. Click for a larger view. Image: Runa Workshop
Since no rendering is available at the moment for this project, you’re just going to have to look back and forth between the various images above and sort of plot out for yourself where the depth is on the flat elevation drawings — basically you’ve got two intersecting masses, one a bit taller than the other, with each positioned on a slight diagonal. There’s also four levels of underground parking included, along with a rooftop terrace — an office amenity in high demand these days, and for good reason!
This selection from a site and paving plan for the 218 South Lamar office building gives you a reasonable idea of its orientation with the surrounding streets. Click for a larger view. Image: Runa Workshop
More offices are great and all, and Runa does good work — in fact, the official TOWERS.net HQ is located in the Runa-designed WeWork building on Barton Springs Road, also developed by Generational Commercial Properties — but the most interesting thing about this project to the general public will likely be its occupied height of 95 feet, with the structure’s actual total height including the mechanical plant space at the top ringing up at 110 feet.
Unless we’re sorely mistaken, that’ll make this the tallest building west of South Lamar Boulevard, another benchmark for increasing heights south of the river in general as echoed by projects like the 96-foot 211 South Lamar Boulevard hotel and condo development going up across the street from here:
The 96-foot hotel and condo project at 211 South Lamar Boulevard will be roughly the same height as the 218 South Lamar office building. Click for a larger view. Image: Rhode Partners
Both of these developments are achieving their scale through planned unit development agreements, something residents of nearby neighborhoods like Zilker aren’t particularly thrilled about — feel free to leaf through the archives of this site to see how we feel about it, but generally speaking we think it’s a great idea to build up instead of out. Details are scarce on both the timeline for the current restaurant’s closure and the 218 project’s construction, but current city documents imply a groundbreaking date could arrive as soon as 2020.
Zilker Park homes for sale
-
$358,000
1135 Barton Hills DR #231
Austin, TX -
$365,000
1900 Barton Springs RD #5015
Austin, TX -
$515,000
1600 Barton Springs RD #3506
Austin, TX -
$1,290,000
1509 Treadwell ST
Austin, TX -
$1,300,000
1820 Spillman ST
Austin, TX -
$289,000
1240 Barton Hills DR #222
Austin, TX -
$529,000
1600 Barton Springs RD #6603
Austin, TX -
$1,899,000
2606 Foxglen DR
Austin, TX -
$460,000
1900 Barton Springs RD #5008
Austin, TX -
$975,000
1007 Azie Morton RD
Austin, TX -
$478,000
1900 Barton Springs RD #3028
Austin, TX -
$3,495,000
804 Garner AVE
Austin, TX -
$325,000
1900 Barton Springs RD #1043
Austin, TX -
$368,500
1600 Barton Springs RD
Austin, TX -
$469,000
1900 Barton Springs RD #5006
Austin, TX -
$439,900
1900 Barton Springs RD #2006
Austin, TX -
$688,000
1702 Bauerle AVE
Austin, TX -
$1,185,000
2005 Goodrich ST
Austin, TX -
$2,045,000
1720 Bartoncliff DR
Austin, TX -
$775,000
900 Lund ST #B
Austin, TX -
$699,500
2607 Trailside DR #4
Austin, TX -
$1,595,000
1105 Azie Morton RD
Austin, TX -
$1,650,000
2104 Peach Tree ST
Austin, TX -
$795,000
1808 Collier ST
Austin, TX -
$649,000
1501 Barton Springs RD #210
Austin, TX
-
$358,000Lot Size2,527 sqft
Home Size1,019 sqft
Beds2 Beds
Baths2 Baths
-
$365,000Lot Size1.87 ac
Home Size696 sqft
BedsN/A
Baths1 Bath
-
$515,000Lot Size610 sqft
Home Size935 sqft
Beds2 Beds
Baths2 Baths
-
$1,290,000Lot Size5,489 sqft
Home Size2,163 sqft
Beds4 Beds
Baths3 Baths
-
$1,300,000Lot Size6,099 sqft
Home Size2,666 sqft
Beds4 Beds
Baths3 Baths
-
$289,000Lot Size1,525 sqft
Home Size732 sqft
Beds1 Bed
Baths1 Bath
-
$529,000Lot Size654 sqft
Home Size997 sqft
Beds2 Beds
Baths2 Baths
-
$1,899,000Lot Size22,434 sqft
Home Size1,803 sqft
Beds3 Beds
Baths2 Baths
-
$460,000Lot SizeN/A
Home Size887 sqft
Beds1 Bed
Baths1 Bath
-
$975,000Lot Size8,843 sqft
Home Size1,050 sqft
Beds1 Bed
Baths2 Baths
-
$478,000Lot SizeN/A
Home Size839 sqft
Beds1 Bed
Baths1 Bath
-
$3,495,000Lot Size15,246 sqft
Home Size3,121 sqft
Beds4 Beds
Baths3 Baths
-
$325,000Lot SizeN/A
Home Size576 sqft
BedsN/A
Baths1 Bath
-
$368,500Lot Size741 sqft
Home Size743 sqft
Beds1 Bed
Baths1 Bath
-
$469,000Lot SizeN/A
Home Size887 sqft
Beds1 Bed
Baths1 Bath
-
$439,900Lot Size1.87 ac
Home Size887 sqft
Beds1 Bed
Baths1 Bath
-
$688,000Lot Size6,317 sqft
Home Size1,006 sqft
Beds3 Beds
Baths2 Baths
-
$1,185,000Lot Size7,754 sqft
Home Size1,889 sqft
Beds4 Beds
Baths3 Baths
-
$2,045,000Lot Size31,364 sqft
Home Size3,712 sqft
Beds4 Beds
Baths4 Baths
-
$775,000Lot Size3,747 sqft
Home Size1,800 sqft
Beds2 Beds
Baths3 Baths
-
$699,500Lot Size3,747 sqft
Home Size2,140 sqft
Beds3 Beds
Baths3 Baths
-
$1,595,000Lot Size9,627 sqft
Home Size2,430 sqft
Beds4 Beds
Baths3 Baths
-
$1,650,000Lot Size5,794 sqft
Home Size2,824 sqft
Beds3 Beds
Baths4 Baths
-
$795,000Lot Size7,362 sqft
Home Size1,440 sqft
BedsN/A
BathsN/A
-
$649,000Lot Size4,052 sqft
Home Size1,537 sqft
Beds1 Bed
Baths2 Baths
