Search Results for: sabine

Waller Creek District Update

Jude Galligan | September 11, 2009 |

The entire Waller Creek District Master Plan can be downloaded here.

Waller Creek District Master Plan - Open Spaces — Waller Creek District Master Plan – Open Spaces

The vision for more and safe public spaces along Waller Creek, including park like connectivity from Waterloo Park to Lady Bird Lake, was a primary motivation for choosing to live at the Sabine. When I tell people about Waller Creek, a common response is “Waller Creek… they’re still tryin’ to get that done, huh?”

The Waller Creek Tunnel Project and subsequent improvements to the district represent one of the most significant urban renewal project in Austin. I was appointed to the Waller Creek Citizens Advisory Committee (WCCAC) last month. Since then my understanding of what’s happening with Waller Creek has improved significantly – The Waller Creek Tunnel is on time and on budget and will break ground in late 2010 or early 2011.

Waller Creek District Master Plan - Land Use — Waller Creek District Master Plan – Land Use

At last night’s WCCAC meeting, ROMA delivered a highly compelling draft of a master plan for Waller Creek. While we were only presented with a draft, ROMA’s Waller Creek districting plan creates a vast amount of public space and a Sabine Street promenade is one example of a progressive districting plan as a whole. Sabine Street’s wide and underutilized right-of-ways could be converted into a more pedestrian and bicycle friendly promenade. The promenade would most likely deliver large 30ft+ areas for al-fresco dining, bicycle lanes that connect back into the Waller Creek trail system, and enough room for limited automobile traffic to still get through.

On October 24th, ROMA will present the entire plan at a town hall meeting.

-Jude

Machete Filming In Downtown Austin

Jude Galligan | August 13, 2009 |

If you’ve been downtown today, then you’ve likely noticed the myriad of film trucks parked from Whole Foods to Sabine. Robert Rodriguez is shooting his latest film Machete. Robert DeNiro has been spotted by residents of the Brazos Lofts watching from across the street.

HeadOfMetal has uploaded some photos to Flickr.

Cool!

What A Ride On Waller Creek

Jude Galligan | August 2, 2009 |

[youtube = http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCtZ0N_W8wc]

With 50+ people in attendance, Saturday’s Waller Creek Bike Ride was successful at bringing people together to envision a future for Waller Creek. We gathered at the Mexican American Cultural Center, which is just a few hundred feet from the southern outlet of Waller Creek. From there we rode on along the hike and bike trail before entering what is properly known as the Waller Creek Greenbelt.

Click here to view the photostream from the tour

We stopped at several points along the way. There is a large gap in the trail at Cesar Chavez where the flooding and runoff have destroyed the path. As you ride back up behind Iron Works you can briefly reconnect by crossing Red River. At 5th and Sabine we stopped and gathered to listen to a vision for creating a promenade – pedestrian and bicycle only – along the narrow and sparsely traveled Sabine Street between 4th and 7th Streets. An interesting idea that can leverage the already wide sidewalks along Sabine Street.

[youtube = http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Vqm4otX8FE]

Pushing on we were able to reconnect with the creek bank between 6th and 7th Streets, below Texas Picnic Company. This is a notorious gateway for vagrancy and criminal activity, so it was no surprise that as our group pulled up we were greeted by five APD cars investigating something. Down into the creek, we begin to see the wonderful limestone creek bed. It’s beauty is ironically created from centuries of violent flooding.

As we rode past the Police Headquarters, gathered behind the Waller Creek Building, then continued to ride through Symphony Square and into Waterloo Park it became salient just how much property the city owns along Waller Creek. Once we arrived at Waterloo Park we had a Q&A. As it turns out there was someone from the State of Texas who joined the ride and commented that the State is very interested in working on solutions to improve Waterloo park by addressing the problems of unfriendly parking garages along San Jacinto. Having only heard that there has been no outreach, to or from the State, I took this as a very positive declaration.

[youtube = http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Ez0RpsqR4c]

The Waller Creek Tunnel Project, simply the infrastructure that will enable and entitle district improvements, stops at Waterloo Park near 12th Street. We continued to follow the path of the creek north bound past 15th Street and behind the UT Tennis courts. We ultimately stopped at Crown & Anchor where everyone was able chat over beers and burgers.

This was a unique experience and an opportunity to hear the whispers, subtle conversation, and sharing of opinions on how to utilize Waller Creek once the tunnel is complete. Jeb Boyt, Shawn Shillington, Jana McCann, Rachel Proctor May, and Councilmember Chris Riley provided great information and a fun time.

-Jude

Lustre Pearl on Rainey Street

Jude Galligan | April 23, 2009 |

Two evenings ago, we decided to take stroll down to Lady Bird Lake. We headed south from the Sabine and as we crossed Cesar Chavez we recalled another Sabine resident had clued us in to a cool new venue called Lustre Pearl. Set at the entrance to the old-house-commercially-zoned madness that is Rainey Street, Lustre Pearl is the perfect setting for its downtown Austin location. Sitting a couple of blocks away from thousands of residents currently and soon to be living in the southeast quadrant of downtown Austin.

Inside you’re greeted to a stripped down old house with the original floors and window transoms. Outside you have lounge seating and bistro tables surrounded by a artistic metal fence. The outdoor ping-pong table is the perfect touch for Austin.

What’s really special about Lustre Pearl is that it’s removed from the traditional bar/lounge districts. Reminds me of Spider House, but without the coffee. Which brings me to the only suggestion I have for Lustre Pearl: be a cafe, too!

-Jude

Lustre Pearl

Thanks to Theresa at the Sabine for the tip!

The Challenges of Waterloo Park

Jude Galligan | April 8, 2009 |

With vegetation, a natural creek bed, seclusion, and rolling hills, Waterloo Park has the “right stuff” to be the best park in Austin. Flanked on the east and west by Red River Street and ~~San Jacinto Blvd~~ Trinity, respectively, Waterloo Park’s configuration runs north-south length wise between 15th and 12th streets, as Waller Creek meanders through it.

A couple weekends ago, we wanted to check out the “Birth of Cool” exhibit at the Blanton museum, and we decided to walk from our building (Sabine) along Waller Creek through Waterloo Park.

As we walked through Waterloo Park, we were overtaken with its beauty but disappointed in its care. We found a littered creek, overgrown vegetation, and hazardous pathways. One unmarked sinkhole in the middle of the pathway would have seriously injured anyone who didn’t notice it – easily three feet deep.

Waterloo Park sits in an industrial zone

With all of its innate beauty, Waterloo Park is analogous to a gifted MVP baseball player, who somehow gets stuck playing for a losing team.

Waterloo Park sits underutilized inside an industrial zone of competing real estate interests: Travis County, State of Texas, University of Texas, and Brackenridge Hospital.

Tough location, eh?

Hospital parking garages to the east. State of Texas parking garages to the west. Social services and more parking garages to the north. The neighborhood and urban fabric breaks down north of 11th Street. Lack of coordination by the major real estate holders yields nothing of significant neighborhood value to draw a critical mass of pedestrians.

Waterloo Park is a great example of the results of poor urban planning and stakeholder coordination – the park is surrounded with parking garages (blight), is not integrated into the fabric of our neighborhood, and is often inhabited with drug addicts, drunks, and panhandlers. As such, it remains a destination that few people care to visit.