After reviewing the promising early results of the city’s safety pilot on Barton Springs Road last month, we decided to casually survey our readers on where they might like to see the project’s infrastructure improvements applied elsewhere in Austin. The pilot’s “road diet”-style lane reduction, added protection for bike lanes, and upgraded pedestrian access all constitute a no-brainer for the highly visible gateway…
residential
Affordable Senior Housing Planned in Downtown Church Parking Lot
Churches are one of the most overlooked owners of urban land, with more than a dozen large properties held by congregations in the downtown Austin area alone. Facing declining attendance and rising property values, some churches looking to maximize the use of these properties in alignment with their faith-based missions are pursuing affordable housing development — it’s so…
Demolition Approved for Riverside Place Shopping Center in Southeast Austin
A demolition permit filed with the city nearly a year ago for the Riverside Place shopping center at 2410 East Riverside Drive was finally approved this week, another sign that the 10-acre strip center’s redevelopment by owners Endeavor Real Estate Group are slowly moving forward. Endeavor, which purchased the property in 2019, has not yet publicly acknowledged any plans…
A Residential Project Dips a Toe Into Sixth Street’s Bar District at The Grant
The apartment project planned for the Grant Plaza offices at 611 East Sixth Street would be the first major residential development built inside downtown Austin’s infamous Sixth Street entertainment district in a generation — and even before a certain sense of uncertainty struck our local real estate market, the proposal first surfaced in 2022 by New York-based investment firm Empire Square Group and national developers Ryan…
Transforming the Sprawl and Saving the Pink Gorilla at Anderson Square
Anderson Square is the official name for the 16-acre ocean of asphalt located at the southwest corner of the interchange between Highway 183, West Anderson Lane, and North Lamar Boulevard in Central Austin; a sleepy yet humongous shopping center anchored by a Hobby Lobby, Planet Fitness, and one of the city’s most consistently underused parking lots. Aside…
In Austin, ‘More Housing’ Doesn’t Scare People Quite Like It Used To
The transformative land use changes passed by Austin City Council last week didn’t come out of nowhere, although the possibility of their adoption felt like wild fantasy only a few short years ago. The speed of Austin’s changing local attitude towards density and zoning reform makes a bit more sense in the face of rising housing costs — by 2020, even relatively high earners started experiencing the effects of our local…