downtown Austin's neighborhood and real estate blog
We have a dog. His name is Blog, incidentally, and he is a very sweet shih tzu that we have had since he was 2 months old (he is now 7 months old). As I said, he is very sweet, but he is NOT always very well behaved.
Dog behavior is a quality of life issue for human owners all on its own, but it’s compounded when you live in smaller quarters without a yard where you can just let your pup play and be out of your hair. A well-mannered, trained dog is simply
a [Read more...]
Anyone listening in at City Hall might have heard city staff remind city council not to call the new hotel hotels being pitched downtown a “convention hotel.”
If you are wondering why, check out this story I wrote while at the Austin Business Journal in December. It is curious why this point has been overlooked or ignored by other media outlets.
To plagiarize, well, myself: “The city barred itself nine years ago from designating any other hotel as one of the city’s ‘convention center hotels’ when it agreed to a contract that called for issuing more than $250 million in bonds to build the downtown Austin Hilton, according to public records filed with the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board, or MSRP. The city reaffirmed that pledge when it refinanced the bonds in 2006.”
The second hotel developers are quick to point out they are not asking for subsidies, like the Marriott project planned on 2nd Street and Congress Avenue is.
But they can’t, according to the contract.
Interestingly, the Statesman reported on June 23 that the second hotel, planned by Austin developers Perry Lorenz and Robert Knight, could be a Hilton.
But according to the same contract I sourced above, the Hilton can’t build another hotel unless they cut through some red tape.
Just goes to show, I guess, a contract with the city is only as good as the litigators you want to enforce it.
A well timed announcement for a 50+story hotel at Red River and Cesar Chavez has shifted the attention away from the Mariott Marquis seeking a waiver of $4MM in development fees.
The latest hotel announced by Manchester Texas Financial Group is receiving good reviews for its design, ambition, and potential for embracing the Waller Creek District Master Plan.
To be clear, there really isn’t a choice here. Each project is pushing forward on their own merits. But the timing begs the question “which building can break ground first?”.
Both would be significant additions to the skyline and economy. Development fee waivers, if any, will likely go to the project that is most prepared and that can begin construction soonest.
That’s incentive!
The Statesman reports that more glass panels fell from downtown Austin’s W Hotel. Fortunately, nobody was hurt. This is the second incident of falling glass panels this month. In the photo below, it appears there are panels missing from three floors.
UPDATE: [Read more...]
The news didn’t stop to take a breath this week, at least as it relates to downtown Austin. Lots of announcements, lots of speculation. These are the stories we’re following.
1) 219 West is moving from Warehouse district to West 6th Street, into the old Union Park space. (link)
2) In “how will they fit it in there?” news: a proposed tower between Shoal Creek and Spring Condos, behind Tiniest Bar In Texas. (link) UPDATE: Zoning change approved (link)
3) The White Lodging Hotel on Congress Ave isn’t the only proposed hotel. In fact, there’s another player looking at the lot next to the Palm School, and they are not seeking any fee waivers. (link)
4) Austin City Council delays vote on the White Lodging (“Mega Hotel”) fee waivers. (link)
5) Permanent supportive housing should not be placed near other social services (link)
6) Gables Republic Park says they won’t build soon, or at least until Travis County gets a clear vision on its new downtown courthouse site. (link)
It seems that having Armbrust & Brown attorney Richard Suttle as the representative of the hotel developers I wrote about Monday may be a little too hot for some council members to handle.
On Tuesday morning, Council Members Bill Spelman, Sheryl Cole and Laura Morrison seemed skeptical that his clients need almost $4 million in city breaks to help to build a hotel downtown.
Students of city politics should note that the power base at city council has now shifted from Mayor Lee Leffingwell, Mayor Pro Tem Mike Martinez and Chris Riley — who are losing defeated incumbent Randi Shade — to the other council members, who are gaining Kathie Tovo next month.
For one weekend in June, thousands upon thousands of men and woman from around America loudly announce they are not normal and converge upon Austin for the ROT (Republic of Texas) Rally.
The roar of their machines remind us that this is a different breed of people. Thank you ROT Rally for coming back to Austin year after year and helping keep Austin weird and loud, if only for one extended weekend.
News broke Friday that the shelved White Lodging Services Corp. plans for a 1,000-plus hotel at 2nd Street and Congress Avenue are back on the stove.
The news seems to echo what Assistant City Manager Robert Goode told council at a recent hearing: “We are a big city, get over it.”
Be Yoga just opened in the Rainey Street District!
Located in the Windsor (née Legacy on the Lake), Be Yoga is a no-frills studio, about 1,000 square feet, just a stone’s throw from the lake and across from the Milago condos.
Perhaps more intriguing than it’s location is the fact that it’s a [Read more...]
Second Bar + Kitchen is aptly named for it’s Congress Ave @ Second Street location. But don’t think for a second that the food isn’t first-rate (wakka wakka!).
On a whim, I ventured over to Second a couple of Sundays ago (after a morning coffee at the Austonian’s Caffe Medici) and was pleasantly surprised by the food and the atmosphere of the restaurant. I was seated on the second story, which was a small, covered balcony with simple tables and faux grass carpeting: [Read more...]
Recent Comments
It seems as though your biased statements are based upon an uninformed belief and that you actually know nothing about ...
100% of the people living in this project will be receiving handouts. If you are paying $500 or under ...
New Renderings Of Capital Studios | Downtown Austin Blog http://t.co/sh6uc5b9
Draft art renderings of Capital Studios, our proposed downtown affordable community, via @downtown_austin http://t.co/lzgrne1b
Austin does not pride itself on "luxury-living" in downtown! That's an illusion made up by the residents of the Austonian/360 ...
My oh my what harsh language! I'm not criticizing anyone personally and its an opinion of my own so take ...
You want Foundation Communities to build a project in East Austin, that would take advantage of the Metro Rail? They ...
A bit perplexed on why you would think I have " the old attitudes about East Austin being the scary ...
If you want the real estate to stay prime two, three, or more decades from now, it's a much smarter ...
Okay, where are you getting that this is going to be a drab, prison-like building. The rendering looks pretty nice, ...
East Austin is only a couple blocks away. This is PRIME real estate. Why does it have to be right ...
There was already interest by developers for this lot to build condos/apartments atop retail with a great design. To ...
I agree with Zeke. The current idea of downtown being a luxury living location really began with the completion of ...
@downtownliving 1) you obviously have not been in Austin long if you think a. Austin is for the well-to-do or ...
You're a clown. "Always been for the well to do"? Hilarious! You couldn't have walked down Rainey St. at night ...