It’s been four years since our mildly controversial assertion that a new downtown residential tower could soon rise at 506 and 508 West Avenue, adjacent tracts currently occupied by restaurants Irene’s and Taquero Mucho — and although nothing’s broken ground yet at this 0.57-acre land assembly, it’s become increasingly clear that a tower plan is moving forward at this site. Notification letters…
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Austin’s Bringing Back Buford Tower, With Repairs Kicking Off This Month
Buford Tower, a six-story masonry tower standing at West Cesar Chavez and Colorado Streets near the shores of Lady Bird Lake, was originally built in 1930 as a drill facility for the Austin Fire Department, repeatedly set aflame and doused as a training exercise for putting out fires in multi-story structures — which was highly effective, since few…
The Best of the Best of Austin 2022
Everyone over here at TOWERS.net was more than honored yesterday to receive the Austin Chronicle’s Best of Austin 2022 award for “Best Guide to Tomorrow’s Austin” — we thought our little articles on buildings were pretty good, but it’s nice to hear it from the city’s alternative weekly of record. With that honor in mind, we thought we’d share the…
A Downtown Micro-Apartment Project Stirs to Life on East Ninth Street
Roughly six years after the first appearance of the plan, a “micro-housing” apartment project by 70 Rainey developers Sackman Enterprises appears to be moving forward at 703 East Ninth Street, a 0.76-acre land assembly at the southwest corner of East Ninth Street and the I-35 Frontage Road stretching west to the edge of Waller Creek. With its permit approved by the…
It’s Time to Break Free From Downtown Austin’s Capitol Dominance Overlay
A resolution on the agenda for tomorrow’s meeting of the Austin City Council could significantly alter the development restrictions currently imposed on properties in the Capitol Dominance Overlay District surrounding the vicinity of the Texas State Capitol by allowing these sites to participate in the city’s Downtown Density Bonus Program, which would permit additional height and density to new buildings in exchange…
Fifth and Red River Tower Fixing Up Downtown’s Historic Old Depot Hotel
A longstanding plan for an apartment tower at the corner of East Fifth and Red River Streets in downtown Austin by local developers Stonelake Capital Partners will rehabilitate the 150-year-old building at the property most recently known as the longtime home of Carmelo’s Italian Restaurant, which closed in 2017 after 32 years of business at this historic site located at…