• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Downtown Austin Blog

downtown Austin's real estate and neighborhood blog

You are here: Home / Archives for Downtown Austin Districts

Downtown Austin Districts

The Shore Condos Battle Developer AND Villas On Town Lake

Jude Galligan | February 24, 2010 |

The rumble on Rainey Street… it’s a clash of the condos!

Like most condominiums, The Shore Condos are controlled by its home owners association (HOA).  Like several condominiums in downtown Austin, The Shore Condos are actually a sub-association of a more senior association.  In this case, The Shore Condos are the “residential unit” and one half of a master association called the Waterfront Master Condominium Association, Inc.   The other half is a “hotel unit” – ostensibly setup as the place holder for the Hotel Van Zandt (and may still be).

In 2005 High Street Rainey, LP purchased Lot 1, Red River Addition, from Sack Family Holding, Ltd (the “Waterfront Property”).  In 2006 High Street Rainey, LP created the Waterfront Master Condominium Association, Inc.  Prior to that, when the Villas On Town Lake’s land was originally deeded, the seller withheld a 50 x 50 right-of-way easement where Red River meets Davis St in order to provide access to the south of Davis Street in perpetuity.

In 2007 High Street Rainey LP + JMIR-Austin Hotel, LP + The Waterfront Master Condominium Association, Inc. sued the Villas On Town Lake Owners Association, Inc for encroaching on that easement.  Note that at this point in the story, the “residential unit”, aka the Shore Condominium HOA is not named in the lawsuit.  In fact, the “residential unit” wouldn’t learn about this lawsuit until recently.

As best as we can figure out, the Villas decided this easement could be used to locate a dumpster.  The developer of The Shore, who by right also has use of the 50 x 50 easement, removed the dumpster and the parties sued each other.  In 2008 the parties reach a written settlement agreement, but for reasons unknown this agreement wasn’t actually executed.  Earlier this month, the Villas filed a motion to enforce that settlement agreement.

Not so fast.

[youtube = http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZPRf8qL8h0]

The Shore Condominium HOA (“residential unit”) legally intervened by filing an objection to the Villas motion to enforce the settlement agreement, on the grounds that any settlement agreement would bind The Shore Condominium HOA to something they weren’t a party to.  So, the Shore HOA wants to put the kibosh on a settlement agreement that could adversely affect their interests.

B-b-b-but wait it gets worse!

The Shore Condos seem to be unclear about how, or if, they are would be bound by the settlement agreement.  The Shore Condominium HOA asserts in a legal filing that:

The Shore Association is not clear on how such terms [re: the settlement agreement] would impact its’ members regarding the easement contemplated.

To the best of our knowledge this is a Mexican standoff.  Since the original parties sued each other, it’s unlikely they will both simultaneously drop all of their claims.  The judge is unlikely to enforce a settlement agreement that would bind a party that was not originally part of that agreement.

Friggin’ dumpsters.

Filed Under: downtown austin, Downtown Austin lofts, condos, apartments, exclude, Rainey Street District, Real Estate Tagged With: The Shore Condos, Villas On Town Lake

G’Raj Mahal Cafe (Not Garaj Mahal) – **MENU**, HOURS, and REVIEW: Indian Restaurant Now Open in Downtown Austin

AG | December 13, 2009 |

9/25/2012: Breaking news….G’raj Mahal announces through their Facebook page that they are expanding! 2nd Location will be at 73 Rainey Street, and it looks like they will have live music. Check out our story on the details of G’raj Mahal’s expansion here.

7/3/2012: Updated menu below! Large groups should note that G’raj Mahal now only takes a maximum of 3 credit cards per order – no matter how many people are in the group.  I was told by a server that this policy has been around for years, but I’ve been with several large groups there and June 2012 was the first time this happened, so I think it’s actually relatively new. This policy seems particularly odd to me personally because the minimum credit card order there is $10 (last time I checked, unless they’ve changed that, too), so logic would tell me so long as the total bill for each card is larger than $10, there shouldn’t really be an issue from a fees perspective.  I guess maybe it has to do with the servers not wanting to take the time to run multiple cards?  I’ve asked Sidney Roberts, the owner – but she has yet to give me a response or reason on the issue….will keep you updated!

Incidentally, it’s also worth noting that the gratuity for parties of 5 or more is now 20% (it used to 18%, per their older menu).

7/2/2010: G’Raj Mahal is currently open from 5pm-12am on Weekdays, 5pm-3am Fri-Sat.  CLOSED Mondays. Also looks like all delivery will now be going through Longhorn Delivery (contact info on menu). G’Raj Mahal is BYOB!!!

Sidney, the owner also wanted me to let everyone know that the lamb is halal, blessed, and grassfed – for those following strict diets.

REVIEW:

If somebody asked me what I thought about eating Indian food made in a truck, my *go-to* response would be  – “less good choice.”  At least, that was until I tried G’Raj Mahal Cafe (no website yet, but you can find them on Facebook), located at 91 Red River Street in Downtown Austin.  Ummmmm…super yummy!

This gem opened a couple of weeks ago, and when I had the opportunity to try it out the other day, I was very pleasantly surprised.  I had the Vegetable Goan Coconut Currie with the Classic Vegetable Samosa, which was all washed down with a Mexican Coke:

Looking at the menu, I initially thought the pricing seemed way super high.  After all, this is food made from a trailer.  However, the food was made to order, tasted fresh and high-quality, and the portions were generous. While I still think it’s a bit on the pricey side, I also believe that it’s worth it.

**UPDATE 12/14/2009: The owner (Sidney aka Ms. GM) just contacted me to tell me: “FYI…We reduced our prices this week slightly for the entrees as much as we could. However, we use such high grade ingredients, we are somewhat restricted to obey our food costs. We will soon have a late night menu with $5-8 items like naan wraps, lamb burgers, Indian “taco” salad, and spicy goan sausages.” Once I’ve received the updated menu, I will post it.

G’Raj Mahal Cafe does table service and take-out.  The table service I experienced was friendly (even deferential) and the overall vibe was good.  I would note that there is no indoor seating, but the outdoor seating is covered, and what I would describe as breezy, surrounded by peacefully flowing pieces of gauzy white fabric.  Here’s a shot of the typical table:

Overall, I think it’s a good, unique addition to the downtown Austin restaurant landscape, gives the east side of Congress a quality casual dining option, and is a small business that I will support.  It’s just a few steps from our residence at The Shore Condos.  My only real complaint so far is that it’s only open for dinner (from 5pm-3am everyday).  I think a Saturday/Sunday lunch (business permitting) would be awesome.

Did you enjoy this article? Share the love, we appreciate it! Share

Filed Under: austin recreation, austin restaurant reviews, downtown austin, life, miscellaneous, Rainey Street District, small business, urban family

Bars On Rainey Street

Jude Galligan | September 8, 2009 |

Click here for more recent DAB articles covering the Rainey Street neighborhood.

Over the weekend I was walking down Rainey Street and decided to collect photos of the explosion of TABC application permits. It’s worth pointing out again our belief that downtown Austin has an “over saturation of bars” to quote Tom Stacy at today’s RECA luncheon. Single nighttime only uses would be short sighted, and will fail to tap into the consumer demands of the 858+ residences in the Rainey Street neighborhood. Of course, TABC application posts do not indicate that the venue will just be a bar – the venue is just as likely to be a restaurant or cafe.

Below is a complete list of burgeoning Rainey Street venues. DAB readers, please use the comments to fill in any details you know about these venues.

[Link to recent Statesman article]

“El Naranjito”
85 Rainey Street
application only

“Container Bar”
90 Rainey Street
application only

“96”
96 Rainey Street
under construction (link)

“Lustre Pearl”
97 Rainey Street
open for business

“Clive Bar”
609 Davis Street
application + under construction

-Jude

85 Rainey Street
85 Rainey Street - El Naranjito (?)
90 Rainey Street
90 Rainey Street - Container Bar
609 Davis Street - Clive Bar
609 Davis Street - Clive Bar

Filed Under: entertainment district, Rainey Street District Tagged With: austin condos, austin lofts, rainey street

Rainey Street: Right Place Right Time

Jude Galligan | August 24, 2009 |

The Statesman gets the details on the evolving Rainey Street district. As DAB reported on Lustre Pearl and Clive Bar, Lustre Pearl sets just the right tone for the unique tree lined street with CBD zoned bungalow homes. The opportunity on Rainey Street is for more diverse uses including restaurants and coffee shops that leverage the charm of the street. This make sense in a down real estate market. There is little likelihood of any major building taking advantage of the CBD zoning within the next five years. Now, property owners have incentive to lease the properties to entrepreneurs like Bridget Dunlap who will rehab the existing structure and make the neighborhood more desirable.

I’m most looking forward to “96” – “In October, Dunlap plans to open 96, as in 96 Rainey St., across the street from Lustre Pearl in another 1907 house. It will serve beer, wine, coffee, pizza and other items.”

-Jude

Filed Under: downtown austin, Rainey Street District Tagged With: clive bar, lustre pearl, rainey street

  • « Go to Previous Page
  • Go to page 1
  • Interim pages omitted …
  • Go to page 34
  • Go to page 35
  • Go to page 36

Primary Sidebar

Archives

TOWERS.net – Austin Condos For Sale

TOWERS realty
LEGAL NOTICE: Texas Real Estate Commission Consumer Protection Notice. • Information About Brokerage Services. • Copyright © 2007-2022 Jude Galligan. All rights reserved. Site Map