We usually have a good time ragging on the outdated urban planning principles of the later 20th century -- urban renewal, highways everywhere, other weirdness -- so it's a little embarrassing to admit that Hancock Center, the 34-acre strip mall you know and love(?) at East 41st and Red River Streets, was a more pleasantly-designed environment for human beings between its ...
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Neighborhood-Scale Grocery Stores Keep Austin Stocked in a Pandemic
Austinites looking to avoid waiting in line at the major grocery stores limiting their occupancy during the coronavirus pandemic are likely discovering just how useful it is to have a small grocery store or bodega with staple items available within walking distance of their homes. Local outlets like Fresh Plus, Wheatsville Co-Op, and Royal Blue Grocery are feeding the city ...
Aura On Lamar Apartments Head for North Loop’s ‘Friendly Whale’
Hey, remember the weird chunk of land at the southeast corner of North Lamar Boulevard and West Koenig Lane we decided was shaped kinda like a whale? This guy: The quirky and currently quite empty 3.4-acre tract at 5629 North Lamar Boulevard, purchased from the State of Texas last year for an undisclosed sum by Dallas-based multifamily developer Trinsic Residential ...
In 1999, the Tamale House Fixed Austin’s Hangovers on Airport Boulevard
You'll still find a Tamale House elsewhere in town, but the location most cherished by Austinites on Airport Boulevard was technically the restaurant's third iteration -- though in our experience most people eating there didn't have a firm understanding of why the sign had a #3 at the end. Opened in 1977 and closed after the death of owner Robert Vasquez in 2014, the Tamale ...
What’s the Worst Intersection in Austin?
For such a simple question, we've heard endless possible answers, so we'd like to ask our readers. Click here to fill out our survey, or use the embedded form below: We're mostly interested in troublesome intersections in the central city, like downtown and its surrounding neighborhoods, but we're sure there's plenty out there either way. A lot of factors are going to ...
In 1963, Austin’s Rowdiest Teens Built a ‘Sex Party Tree House’ in North Loop
Let's make one thing clear from the get-go: "Sex Party Tree House" is an extremely funny combination of words, regardless of the context. Since coming across this phrase in a 1963 edition of the Austin American-Statesman, I'll catch myself repeating it in my head, brain clapping like a trained seal, until all semantic meaning fades away -- Sex Party Tree House, Sex Party Tree ...