The 2013 version of the 211 South Lamar project, as seen in this promotional image looking south from the Pfluger Pedestrian Bridge. Image: Rhode Partners
Everything old is new again at the southeast corner of South Lamar Boulevard and West Riverside Drive, as a long-delayed project perhaps best known for irritating its neighbors and not being built for years finally springs into action once more.
That’s at least the impression recent city filings give us regarding the 0.93-acre property at 211 South Lamar Boulevard, occupied at the moment only by a shuttered former Taco Cabana restaurant — also briefly a Pollo Tropical, but who cares? If you just got here last week, the site was slated for a 96-foot, 175-unit residential building all the way back in 2013 by California developers Post Investment Group and Dallas firm Ascension Development, with architecture by Rhode Partners.
The Taco Cabana at 211 South Lamar Boulevard, as seen in 2009. Image: Google Maps
In true Austin form, the proposal — which, by the way, never got an official name beyond its address, though its Planned Unit Development agreement with the city was quickly dubbed the “Taco PUD” — met with instant opposition from neighborhood residents, environmental advocates, and even the folks living in the existing Bridges on the Park condos next door, who were concerned their views and sunshine would be blocked by the new building.
A 2013 video by Rhode Partners, exploring that version of the 211 South Lamar project’s design.
Still, even after fighting through various commissions and City Council itself in a process the Austin Business Journal called “unusually bitter, even for Austin,” in October 2013 the project finally received the zoning changes necessary for its height, and construction seemed just around the corner. It wasn’t!
In May 2014, developer Post sold the property to former Major League Baseball pitcher — and Austin local! — Huston Street and his mother, Janie Street, who planned to build the 211 project with no big changes from Post’s already-approved design. The Taco Cabana at the site closed in 2015, and that’s pretty much the last we heard about this development until now. With Street retiring from professional baseball last year, it appears he’s ready to move forward with the project in earnest after six years of limbo.
The former Taco Cabana/Pollo Tropical at 211 South Lamar Boulevard, as seen in 2018. Image: Google Maps
Thanks to recent city filings over the last couple of months, we know the building we’re probably getting doesn’t appear hugely different in appearance from the one we saw in 2013, though there are a few tweaks — enough, in fact, that the new documents discuss some necessary amendments to the project’s 2013 Planned Unit Development agreement sought by the developer. Still, Rhode Partners remains listed as the architect on the new plans.
Left: A northern-facing rendering of the original 2013 design for the 211 building. Right: Architectural illustrations from the 2019 plans for the same site. It’s not really fair to compare a 3D image to a 2D drawing, but they look pretty similar and have the exact same height of 96 feet. Images: Rhode Partners / Consort
The 2019 version of the building is still 96 feet in height, but now instead of 175 residential units, there’s a 107-room hotel in the mix. Considering how many hotels, particularly the boutique variety, that we’ve seen go up around downtown since this project first appeared, it makes sense that Street might want to hop on that action.
The hotel’s joined by 25 condo units, more than 8,500 square feet of retail use, and about 1,000 square feet of office space. Those 25 condos will include 18 two-bedroom units, five three-bedrooms, one four-bedroom, and one five-bedroom unit — probably needless to say, but five-bedroom condos are pretty hard to find in this part of town, making this an interesting addition.
Left: A rendering from the 2013 iteration of the project showing its shape and interior courtyard facing the neighboring residential building and historic Paggi House. Right: The 2019 site plan for the new version of the project appears to have roughly the same design as the 2013 version, though it’s hard to tell exactly how close they are beyond shape and some other details. Images: Rhode Partners / Consort
As part of the project, the historic Paggi House behind this site at 200 Lee Barton Drive will be renovated into an additional 2,500 square feet of offices as well — the building is apparently currently being used as offices for law firm Drenner Group. The backside of the new structure includes a plaza or courtyard area connected by a breezeway to another open space facing West Riverside Drive — you can see all of these features in the 2019 site plan on the right side of the image above. The structure’s parking is now entirely underground, with two levels and 150 spaces provided.
Architectural drawings from various perspectives of the 211 South Lamar project, as seen in a site plan document dated to March 2019. Image: Consort Engineering
Though there aren’t new renderings of the project at this stage, the drawings of the building from its new site plan look awfully similar to the old building, although it’s completely possible there are some cosmetic changes in store. Either way, the height appears the same as the project’s previous life, meaning its eminent construction might ruffle the same feathers it did in 2013 — on the other hand, maybe we’re getting used to more height on this side of the river?
Homes for sale in 78704
-
$6,500
3801 S 1st ST
Austin, TX -
$3,000
515 Post Road DR
Austin, TX -
$449,900
2408 Thornton RD
Austin, TX -
$725,000
800 Columbus ST
Austin, TX -
$436,000
305 Lightsey RD
Austin, TX -
$424,900
2606 Wilson ST #1105
Austin, TX -
$1,200,000
1008 Daphne CT
Austin, TX -
$650,000
3700 Garden Villa LN #2
Austin, TX -
$549,990
3809 Valley View RD #13
Austin, TX -
$749,000
2310 Westoak DR #A
Austin, TX -
$1,325,000
2800 DEL CURTO RD #3
Austin, TX -
$369,000
207 W Johanna ST #105
Austin, TX -
$380,000
1600 Barton Springs RD #5108
Austin, TX -
$325,000
300 Crockett ST #216
Austin, TX -
$750,000
1403 Garner AVE
Austin, TX -
$575,000
3700 Clawson RD #501
Austin, TX -
$650,000
1805 Bluebonnet LN #B
Austin, TX -
$1,275,000
1805 Bluebonnet LN #A
Austin, TX -
$499,000
503 HAVANA ST #2
Austin, TX -
$1,100,000
3809 Wilson ST
Austin, TX -
$1,350,000
503 HAVANA ST.
Austin, TX -
$547,500
1600 Barton Springs RD #6409
Austin, TX -
$400,000
3809 Valley View RD #1
Austin, TX -
$480,000
1203 Fieldcrest DR
Austin, TX -
$559,990
3809 Valley View RD #15
Austin, TX
-
$6,500Lot SizeN/A
Home Size1,800 sq ft
BedsN/A
BathsN/A
-
$3,000Lot SizeN/A
Home Size1,048 sq ft
BedsN/A
BathsN/A
-
$449,900Lot Size7,972 sqft
Home Size856 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths1 bath
-
$725,000Lot Size6,186 sqft
Home Size1,444 sq ft
Beds3 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$436,000Lot Size6,273 sqft
Home Size1,026 sq ft
Beds3 beds
Baths1 bath
-
$424,900Lot Size2,571 sqft
Home Size1,472 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths3 baths
-
$1,200,000Lot Size8,059 sqft
Home Size2,452 sq ft
Beds4 beds
Baths3 baths
-
$650,000Lot Size5,141 sqft
Home Size2,005 sq ft
Beds4 beds
Baths3 baths
-
$549,990Lot SizeN/A
Home Size1,815 sq ft
Beds3 beds
Baths4 baths
-
$749,000Lot Size4,705 sqft
Home Size2,058 sq ft
Beds3 beds
Baths3 baths
-
$1,325,000Lot Size4,356 sqft
Home Size3,079 sq ft
Beds4 beds
Baths4 baths
-
$369,000Lot Size1,046 sqft
Home Size752 sq ft
Beds1 bed
Baths1 bath
-
$380,000Lot Size480 sqft
Home Size743 sq ft
Beds1 bed
Baths1 bath
-
$325,000Lot Size1,438 sqft
Home Size1,239 sq ft
Beds3 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$750,000Lot Size6,883 sqft
Home Size1,256 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths1 bath
-
$575,000Lot SizeN/A
Home Size1,821 sq ft
Beds3 beds
Baths4 baths
-
$650,000Lot Size8,190 sqft
Home Size1,100 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths3 baths
-
$1,275,000Lot Size8,190 sqft
Home Size2,174 sq ft
Beds3 beds
Baths3 baths
-
$499,000Lot Size8,059 sqft
Home Size1,045 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$1,100,000Lot Size9,801 sqft
Home Size2,730 sq ft
Beds3 beds
Baths3 baths
-
$1,350,000Lot Size8,059 sqft
Home Size3,264 sq ft
Beds5 beds
Baths5 baths
-
$547,500Lot Size741 sqft
Home Size1,117 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$400,000Lot SizeN/A
Home Size1,052 sq ft
Beds2 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$480,000Lot Size8,800 sqft
Home Size1,169 sq ft
Beds3 beds
Baths2 baths
-
$559,990Lot SizeN/A
Home Size1,815 sq ft
Beds3 beds
Baths4 baths
