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Downtown Hilton Heroes

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From this week’s Chronicle:

“Kudos to the Hilton for Saving the Pun-Off

Dear Editor, Utmost kudos to the Downtown Hilton, which rose to the occasion and saved the 32nd O. Henry Pun-Off from being canceled by last Saturday’s noontime deluge. The Hilton offered use of a sixth-floor ballroom, and the joyful event was held by some soggy and very appreciative people. As the Pun-Off is one of the main annual fundraisers for the O. Henry House museum on the block next to the Hilton, it was truly neighbor helping neighbor. Bless y’all at the Hilton for your generosity and lifeline to the punsters.

Guy Ben-Moshe”

I’ve worked with Joe Bolash [GM of the Hilton Austin] on efforts for DANA and Sixth Street Austin and his team is always prepared to lend a hand for the benefit of downtown.

Downtown Austin: Get Pumped About Pumping Iron.

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Someone Needs a Workout!
Someone Needs a Workout!

I’ve always thought it to be the height of irony that people drive to the gym for a workout on the treadmill. That’s why I have always been a proponent a) just taking a jog around Town Lake or the bustling streets of Downtown Austin, or b) if I feel the need for the equipment, to find someplace within walking distance. That’s one of the main reasons Jude and I joined the Tower Health Club and Spa at the Hilton 555. Most people don’t even think about the Tower Health Club, probably because it’s in a hotel and people assume there’s no open membership. However, they have a variety of membership plans and a pretty decent set of equipment. They also have a steam room, sauna, pool, and hot-tub, which is great. Jude and I hit the gym about three times a week, not only because we want to stay healthy, but because it’s really convenient. My only criticism would be that they don’t offer classes like many of the more commercial gyms.

However, the convenience outweighs the class options for me. While we love the THC&S, there are a variety of places to workout in downtown if you want to use equipment or prefer to take classes. Click here for a Google Map showing some results.

Within the last few months, we’ve also upped the ante a bit and hired a personal trainer, Will Wagner. The unique thing about this guy is that he’ll meet you anywhere (within reason). He’s really flexible in terms of coordinating times and places to meet, and he even E-mails us between sessions to help us stay on track. He also introduced us to The Green Shake (contact him for more info on this), which I jokingly refer to as The Fountain of Youth shake…..He’s got several clients in our building and throughout Downtown Austin, so meeting centrally is generally pretty convenient for him, I think.

I guess the point here is that working out doesn’t have to be an ordeal, particularly for those of us living in Downtown Austin, where pretty much everything is a stone’s throw away. For Downtown Austin dwellers, there are a variety of really attractive options to keep fit, such as employing our naturally beautiful surroundings, dropping by one of the many nearby gyms, or even calling a trainer who is more than happy to meet you where you live.

Go get fit!

Bendable Concrete

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I couldn’t resist sharing this.  Bendable concrete that flexes and heals itself when it rains.

Bendable Concrete
Bendable Concrete

“A slab of self-healing concrete bends under 5 percent tensile strain, the force needed to stretch a material by 5 percent of its initial size.

While ordinary concrete would crumble under such pressure, the new material forms micro-cracks that can then auto-seal after being exposed to water and carbon dioxide”

Brazos Place Auction Results

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[youtube = http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWcxxbMI8Ks]

Brazos Place is officially sold out. Today, in less than 90 minutes, 19 downtown Austin residences were sold at an average discount of 29% from asking price.  The best deal of the day was probably the penthouse: 2745 feet purchased for $967,200, originally priced at $1,575,000.  The unit that was being advertised with a starting bid of $80,000 sold for $168,480 (OLP was $199,900).  I was able to take video of that particular auction and you can watch it above.

Below is a brief summary and you can download the complete results here (pdf).

Units sold: 19
Square feet: 23,088
Avg sale price per foot: $281.80
Avg discount from OLP: 29%

-Jude

4th Street Stairway Of Death Becoming Less Deadly

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[Thanks to DANA’s Greg Anderson for the pics!]

If you’ve been to the downtown Austin warehouse district you might agree that part of the appeal is the intermittent above grade pedestrian experience.  Always precarious, though I never witnessed anyone fall.  The staircase across from the Spaghetti Warehouse has always been especially dicey.

The City of Austin is making some changes.  You will no longer risk breaking an ankle (or a head) crossing the street at 4th & Colorado.

Was it mom and stroller friendly?  No.  Was it ADA friendly?  No way.  Was it deadly?  Well, almost, but not because of the stairs.  Was it charmingly awkward?  I think so.

Is this a good use of city funds right now, perhaps at the greater expense of the neighborhood’s magic formula?  You be the judge.

BTW, have you joined DANA yet?

So long stairs!
So long stairs!
Uninspired design
Can we at least have some ivy or vines on the walls?

1/2 City Block For Sale

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The ABJ is reporting that the Whitely Paper Co. building, which was the original site for the downtown Austin 21c Museum & hotel, is back on the market for $3.8MM.

Map

KUT – Richard Garriott On Personal Pods

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If I’m at home, then there is probably public radio playing in the background.  We are blessed here in Austin, Texas to have KUT – a truly terrific local public radio station.  Last week they aired a story in cooperation with “Texas Monthly” based on their May ideas issue.  Ideas to change the world.

“If you were going to change the world, you could pick a worse place to start than Texas. We approached dozens of Texas thinkers and got ideas from the sublime to the futuristic.”

The segment with Richard “Lord British” Garriott is my favorite as he envisions an over head tram network of personal pods to shuffle people around Austin.  He’s even considering putting money behind the idea!  (fast-forward to 7:30).
Via PRX.org (audio is 59 minutes and worth a listen)
-Jude

Waller Creek District Master Plan

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People viewing the Waller Creek District designs

From the City of Austin website: In February 2009, the City authorized the Roma Design Group to begin the Waller Creek District Master Plan. Over the next 10 months, ROMA will work to identify a community vision for the area, identify opportunities and challenges, and recommend ways to make the vision become a reality. Currently much of the land near Waller Creek cannot be developed because it is in the creek’s 100-year floodplain.

Yesterday’s town hall at the convention center to discuss Waller Creek District Master Plan was the largest turnout I’ve seen for Waller Creek. The large audience seemed to collectively understand the need for change. ROMA design group shared a draft vision for the district’s potential. A couple of things become salient yesterday. This will not become Riverwalk “2”. Development will happen to pay for the tunnel and also to encourage the creek’s use. Development recommendations should not be uniform along the creek as different sections offer unique settings.

Segments of Waller Creek:

  • North bank to Cesar Chavez
  • Cesar Chavez to 5th Street
  • 5th Street to 7th Street
  • 7th Street to 11th Street
  • 11th Street to 15th Street

This is good. As an example of the necessity for different sections, compare the North bank to Cesar Chavez with 5th Street to 7th Street. The latter has a beautiful natural limestone bed (in most parts) but is narrowly channeled.  The former has more rough terrain and dangerous erosion along the banks. Breaking up the creek into different sections allows for more focused discussion on highest and best use.

As one of the ROMA representatives said, I’m paraphrasing, “Waller Creek is the most significant urban planning endeavor of our generation”.   Amongst a myriad of other benefits, this the Waller Creek Districrt has the opportunity to bridge East Austin with downtown, to fundamentally improve Waterloo park and Palm park, and to provide a green setting which to traverse downtown north-south and connect with Lady Bird Lake trails.

[Read more…] about Waller Creek District Master Plan

Ashton Austin Pricing

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Ashton Austin: now with pricing!
Ashton Austin: now with pricing!

Pricing for the downtown Austin apartment building, the Ashton Austin, is available – Jude Galligan, 512-226-3414, judegalligan [@] gmail.com. DAB has been covering the Ashton’s obfuscated marketing for months (click to read all posts).  It appears the building is almost ready for prime time.  One-bedrooms are large, ranging in size from 940-1029 ft. A pdf of the pricing can be downloaded here.  For a limited time, the developer is offering two months free on a 12 month lease which effectively reduces the monthly rent by at least $333 per month.

As of today the model units are not open. Judging by the landscaping and the tone of their communications I think it could be as early as this weekend that the model/sales center opens. Expectations are high from tenants who have grown tired of starkly appointed downtown Austin lofts. The photos show a high end finish out, the floor plans are large, and the views are certain to be spectacular… unless you end up staring into 100 Congress. Stay tuned!

-Jude