What was the first high-rise apartment building in Austin? This is obviously a trick question, but the people who keep track of this stuff will generally tell you it's the 15-story Cambridge Tower, which opened in 1965. Using the modern (and not entirely agreed-upon) definition of a high-rise, they're absolutely correct -- especially because we're not counting the ...
historic preservation
In 1937, Austin’s Growing Skyline Saw Towers ‘Shooting Up’
On July 29, 1937, the Austin Statesman printed a special edition of its daily paper commemorating the end of construction on the Buchanan Dam project. One page, as seen above, celebrated the steady growth of Austin's skyline and the economic prosperity it represented -- with its centerpiece, the 307-foot tower of the University of Texas' Main Building, having opened earlier ...
Rainey Street’s Getting a Bar on Stilts
For once, let's cut to the chase. Above, you'll see a picture of a bar on stilts. This two-story project, the actual name of which is currently unknown but should obviously just be "The Bar On Stilts," is currently moving through the planning stages at 609 Davis Street -- an address much better known as the current home of Rainey Street-adjacent and Bridget Dunlap-owned ...
Austin’s Second ‘Jenga Tower’ Could Rise at the Royal Arch Masonic Lodge
After a slightly chilly reception from the city's Historic Landmark Commission back in June, an adjusted plan for the 30-plus story tower imagined above the historic Royal Arch Masonic Lodge at 311 West Seventh Street in downtown Austin rides again at tonight's Commission meeting, and its applicants -- local architects Brett Rhode of Rhode ...
At La Vista de Lopez, an East Austin Holdout Imagines a Tower of Its Own
After holding out against development in a rising district of East Austin for more than 30 years, the Lopez house isn't giving up -- instead, it's planning to go up. This historic single-family home just east of I-35 at 809 East Ninth Street, officially known as the Routon-Alvarez-Lopez House, has enjoyed a long life despite a universe of growth around it due to its ...
