Three years and one pandemic after its first appearance in 2019, the long-awaited plan for a new “Trailhead” park providing enhanced access to the Hike-and-Bike Trail on the far south end of the Rainey Street District in downtown Austin is moving forward. The project’s development partners at the Trail Foundation nonprofit and the city’s Parks and Recreation Department expect to seek council…
rainey street district
Downtown Austin’s Record-Breaking ‘Supertall’ Tower Gets the Green Light
A tower project set to become the tallest in the state has received an approval of its permit from the City of Austin, according to site plan updates from earlier this month and a LinkedIn post by WGI engineer Augustine Verrengia that set the city’s skyscraper enthusiast community on fire over the weekend, including several new views of the record-breaker set to rise at the corner…
64 Months Seems Like Long Enough to Build the Tallest Tower in Texas, Right?
When someone says they’re going to build the tallest tower in the state right in your backyard, it’s okay to get a little thirsty for updates. And brother, we are thirsty. To us, even small steps forward are worth celebrating on the mixed-use office, hotel, and residential “supertall” planned to rise a reported 73 floors (and somewhere between 1,022 feet and…
Take a Trip Through Time to the Austin of 1990 With These Home Videos
Mark Steger is a blogger out of Richardson, Texas, but over Labor Day weekend back in September 1990 he and his family visited Austin for a vacation — and Steger, an enthusiastic producer of home video, filmed several moments of the trip. These candid clips capturing Austin on a beautiful summer day more than 30 years ago…
14-Story Cambria Hotel Project Breaks Ground in the Rainey Street District
The new Rainey Street District location of the Cambria Hotel brand by Choice Hotels International finally broke ground yesterday at 68 East Avenue, four full years after its first announcement — and although the Cambria is part of a chain just like its neighbors directly to the north at the baffling Homewood Suites by Hilton and the upcoming Fairfield by Marriott, respectively located at 78 and…
At 80 Rainey, an Apartment Tower Searches for a Sense of Place
A 49-story tower project planned in the heart of the Rainey Street District will bring 644 apartments along with several new bars and restaurants to this fast-growing downtown neighborhood — and with a number of public-facing features including the preservation of two bungalows currently occupying its site, the development appears more willing than most to accommodate the anxieties of Austinites concerned…