The annual PARK(ing) Day event creates public space in downtown Austin by converting, for a day, many of Congress Avenue's street parking spaces into temporary parklets. It's a fun time, but perhaps more importantly, the event serves as a reminder of how much space we've sacrificed to parking in the public realm of our most famous street -- space that, in many cases, can be ...
downtown
CodeNEXT Is Dead, Long Live CodeNEXT!
CodeNEXT, Austin's long-awaited rejiggering of the land development code, is dead. Mayor Steve Adler was the first politician to acknowledge the reality that "something has gone horribly wrong" and the project had been "poisoned" by "misinformation, hyperbole, fearmongering, and divisive rhetoric." The news cycle moved from breaking news to roundups and ...
Downtown’s Eight-Block Transformation Kicks Off at Capitol Complex
Unlike a lot of downtown Austin developments that kick around in a state of limbo for what feels like a million years before turning dirt, the Texas Facilities Commission isn't screwing around. Commission documents from earlier this month indicate that construction on the underground parking garage component of the Capitol Complex Master Plan's Texas Mall project will begin by ...
Engineering the Independent, Austin’s Next Tallest Tower
Since it's visible from almost everywhere in and around downtown, you probably won't be surprised to learn that Austin's next tallest tower, The Independent, is topped out and in a late stage of construction at 301 West Avenue in the emerging Seaholm District. Roughly 80% of the 58-story residential building's 370 units are spoken for, and the project should deliver in ...
The Scarbrough Building’s ‘Keep Austin Weird’ Sculpture Has Some Haters
Remember that pocket patio and "Keep Austin Weird" sculpture planned in front of the Scarbrough Building at the corner of Congress Avenue and Sixth Street? I ripped on the sculpture a little last time for being kinda corny, but now I feel bad about it. Turns out a significant portion of Austin's Historic Landmark Commission really doesn't like it. The project, ...