Rainey Street District Archives - Page 3 of 8

Jude Galligan | March 6, 2013 | 2 Comments

Signals That Lustre Pearl Is Moving

In response to an application to relocate the structure that is Lustre Pearl, the City of Austin Historic Landmark Commission staff recommendation is to permit the move once a new site is located and approved by staff.

Relocating the structure would free up the CBD zoned dirt for a mixed-use tower on the northern end of Rainey Street.

Opening Lustre Pearl in 2008, Bridget Dunlap was the first to see the opportunity in repurposing Rainey Street’s dilapidated CBD-zoned bungalows into bars.

From the HLC brief…

The house was built c. 1907. The City Directory indicates E.A. Murchison residing at 97 Rainey Street in the first listing for the address in the 1906-07 City Directory; however Mr. Murchison’s listing in the name directory indicates him residing at 1303 E. 12th Street.

The next listing in 1909 indicates physician and surgeon Dr. Samuel H. Haigler residing at the address. He resided there until 1913, after which Mrs. Sara A. Spence, widow of Robert Spense, was the resident and owner until at least 1924. J.C. Sample, a carpenter and his wife Minnie were the next residents until approximately 1933. For the remaining years the house was owned and rented by a series of families, none of which resided at the address for more than a few years at a time. All residents, save Dr. Haigler, were blue collar or “non-professional” workers with occupations such as waiter, dishwasher and janitor. Starting in the late 1940’s surnames of the residents indicate a demographic change from Anglo to Hispanic residents as is typical for addresses in the district. - HLC background info (pdf)

Filed Under: austin history, downtown austin, Rainey Street District

Jude Galligan | March 2, 2013 | 2 Comments

Hotel Van Zandt To Begin Construction This Summer #foolmetwice

If you’ve been around downtown Austin since 2006, you’ve been hearing about the Hotel Van Zandt. It was a sister development to the Shore Condos, sharing the northern end of the site. Hotel Van Zandt was initially planned to be a $100 million, 29-story hotel and condo tower. The scope has been reduced to 16 stories and will include just the hotel component.

“Greg Clay, chief investment officer for JMI Realty, which is developing the Hotel Van Zandt, said his company has applied for building permits and expects to break ground by June on the 16-story, 327-room hotel. It which will be operated by Kimpton Hotels, a San Francisco company, which specializes in chic boutique hotels.

Though JMI has owned the site at Red River and Davis streets since 2006, the project had been stalled by the recession and other factors, but now it’s back on track.” – Austin Business Journal

I’m eager to see this hotel built. We’ve heard this story before, though I’ve heard enough scuttlebutt this time to be optimistic we really will see dirt start turning.

-Jude

[above rendering by WDG Architecture]

Filed Under: austin news, downtown austin, Rainey Street District, Real Estate

Jude Galligan | February 19, 2013 | 9 Comments

More Downtown Austin Apartment & Condo Projects Emerging

It seems like almost every direction we look around downtown Austin, construction cranes are deployed, helping concrete and steel skeletons reach to the sky. Notably the JW Marriott hotel, across from the Austonian, has three cranes in place and will soon take shape. But that’s just the newly visible construction: in and around downtown Austin there’s upwards of 8 million square feet of construction planned or underway.

Sometimes we forget to look outside of the downtown core. Still, there on the far wings of downtown Austin, even more construction is (literally) on the horizon and DAB is here to give you a first look.

North Shore Lofts
More Rainey Street District development is on the way, joining the Sutton Towers, Austin Skyhouse and the (perpetually-stalled) Hotel Van Zandt. Not much is known at this point, but a new multifamily development is planned on a vacant plot of land on the north shore, next to the Holiday Inn right by I-35.

If built, the views of Lady Bird Lake would be incredible (and protected).

This site, addressed 16 North I-35, was rezoned from downtown mixed-use (DMU) to central business district (CBD) in 2005, and at the time was owned by Tom Calhoon, of Calhoon Properties.

Coming Soon: “North Shore Lofts”

West Campus Apartments
Don’t be fooled by the name, this project, at 17th and Guadalupe is not actually in “West Campus“, and is also planned to have condos. Since as long as I can remember, this area near the Dog and Duck Pub, is one of the most run-down areas remaining in downtown, with a lot of properties sitting idly in disrepair.

Last time this site was anything productive it was an Arby’s.

Hopefully, this project will spur additional redevelopment of the low-density legacy buildings all around here. A few blocks north, the UT School of Business is building a new center next to the Player’s Club, which will also expand the AT&T Conference center, which might help energize the area, too.

-Jude

Coming Soon: “West Campus Apartments”

Filed Under: austin apartments, austin condos, development, Downtown Austin lofts, condos, apartments, Rainey Street District, Real Estate

Jude Galligan | January 4, 2013 | 8 Comments

What’s Next For Agora?

Agora is closed.

It was a rocky start and a quick ending to the sports bar on East Ave. Agora’s massive footprint, copious parking, and out-of-place architecture raised questions about what the concept would be really be. “Is it a strip club?” was an all-to-common refrain.

Turns out it really was just a sports bar, albeit one out of place in downtown Austin’s burgeoning Rainey Street neighborhood.

Perhaps the final blow to the struggling venue was last month’s decision by the City of Austin Music Division to revoke Agora’s Outdoor Music Venue permit, after receiving too many noise complaints.

What’s next? Our intel has it that the 18,000 sf CBD-zoned site is now for sale.

Agora OMV permit was revoked in December (pdf)

Filed Under: austin bars, downtown austin, Downtown Austin Districts, Rainey Street District

amber gugino | October 18, 2012 | 14 Comments

The Rainey Street Rundown: A MEGA Post of (Almost) Everything That’s Happening in the Rainey District

The Rainey Street District in downtown Austin has been a hotbed of activity lately, from new apartment high rises, to an influx of new bars – things are really happening in Rainey. So, we thought it helpful to put together a property-by-property guide about all that’s going on. Everything we know about Rainey Street to date [mostly] in one place – this post!

This picture of the Rainey Street has each lot numbered with its numerical address. Look below to the corresponding number to see the skinny on the lot.

51 Rainey Street, Austin (address not shown on map, across from the Milago Condos), Austin Skyhouse apartments

The ABJ reported on the imminent ground-breaking of the Austin Skyhouse Apartments last month. Being built by Novare-Andrews Urban, the same group behind the successful 360 condos, the 20,000 feet of ground floor retail is rumored to include a Royal Blue Grocery.

Jude Galligan | September 26, 2012 | 1 Comment

G’Raj Mahal Cafe Will Expand Onto Rainey Street Proper

One of our favorite Rainey Street restaurants, G’Raj Mahal, yesterday publicly announced plans that they would be setting up a second location at 73 Rainey Street.

From their Facebook Page (link) announcement:

The Graj is sooo excited to announce a second site in progress. The trailer remains but we have long out-grown our kitchen demands and plan to expand just down the street on Rainey. It’ll mean faster service!!! and we will get to finally cook up some new things, too!

Below is a picture of the property they are expanding into. It’s on the east side of Rainey Street, next to the leaning house, two doors north of Javalina.

We’re wondering if they are going to end up moving all of their operations to 73 Rainey, and if the existing 91 Red River (at Davis Street) will be assembled into a larger development. That’s just us speculating. Most importantly, I would love to see the Austin Bike Zoo remain part of the vibe.

We asked Sidney Roberts, owner of G’raj Mahal, if they were going to rehab the house at 73 Rainey and if they were going to use an interior kitchen. She responded, and also gave some insight into how service will work at the new location:

the house on 73 will be adapted so we are actually going to have a built-in trailer of sorts facing the interior of the house but “parked” in the graj…that meets city standards for restaurants…the majority of seating will remain outdoor though with improved cooling and heating capacity and we will have a small amount of indoor seating, a wine/beer bar, and indoor bathrooms…byob will still remain at the current space and we can cater parties that wish to to that…the trailer will have a simplified menu and will operate as a more standard trailer…walk-up service, but the seating and other accommodations will be there

Sidney also said that, depending upon city approvals and funding, they hope to have the new location up and running by the new year.

For a detailed review of the original location, including more pictures, the menu, and other important information about eating at G’Raj Mahal, be sure to checkout DAB’s review of G’Raj Mahal in Austin.

Filed Under: austin restaurant reviews, austin small business, Downtown Austin Districts, Rainey Street District

amber gugino | July 30, 2012 | 6 Comments

Banger’s in Rainey Street District Downtown Austin – MENU, Review, Video, Pics

Today was the grand opening of Banger’s Sausage House & Beer Garden in the Rainey Street District of Downtown Austin. Our office at the The Shore Condos is just a stone’s throw away, so we wanted to support one of the most anticipated venues coming to the ‘hood. We went, had a beer and some grub, and really just enjoyed the perfectly chill vibe, despite the crazy, terrible, make-me-want-to-stab-my-eyes-out heat.

Some will say this is Rainey Street’s answer to [Read more...]

Filed Under: austin bars, austin lifestyle, austin neighborhoods, austin recreation, austin restaurant reviews, austin small business, downtown austin, Downtown Austin lofts, condos, apartments, high rises, lady bird lake, Rainey Street District

amber gugino | May 23, 2012 | 12 Comments

Fishing Pier Coming to Lady Bird Lake in Rainey Street, Downtown Austin

The focus is on inclusion. That’s what Nicole Harmon of Core Health Foundation, a non-profit spin-off of Core Health (a for-profit facility focusing on rehabilitation of those suffering with brain injuries), tells me. The project is a fishing pier, located on the northern shore of Lady Bird Lake, just south of the Holiday Inn off I-35 in the Rainey Street District. The project has been in the works for over 8-years, but was officially approved in 2010, and construction is expected to be complete in 2013. And while the driver and primary purpose of this project is for [Read more...]