downtown Austin's real estate and neighborhood blog
VIEWS + PRIVACY! Unit #1609 at The Shore Condos, is a rare CORNER unit in Downtown Austin’s Rainey Street District. This is the B9 – one of the BEST floor plans in the building with 2bd/2ba + GIANT balcony ready to be furnished. Included: full-size washer and dryer, and refrigerator. First class amenities include: mezzanine level POOL and cabana, community cafe room with wifi, fitness room, concierge.
MLS Listing
$419,000. Preview by appointment.
The Shore Condos in downtown Austin’s Rainey Street neighborhood boasts 192 units with amazing views of Lady Bird Lake and the downtown skyline. Known simply as the “Shore”, the building is popular with people who work downtown yet still want to feel like they’re “going home”. [Read more…] about The Shore Condos
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.
Perhaps in light of the upcoming Sabine auction, The Shore Condos is aggressively working to closeout their sales program. We just received a note from sales office: eight units remain and discounts range from 10-25% off of original asking prices. A large 1bd + study on the 18th floor can be purchased for $243,750. This same unit would have been offered at $325,000 in late 2008.
A pdf of the remaining units and pricing can be downloaded here.
DAB readers will recall that 2009 was a great year for the Shore, as they quietly discounted and sold nearly 75 units over this past summer. In fact, in November, we closed on our new space at the Shore [we’ve leased our beloved 1bd at the Sabine]. The construction quality is outstanding, and the proximity to Rainey Street and the trail cannot be beat.
The Downtown Austin Neighborhood Association (DANA) is holding their 10th Annual Downtown Living Tour, featuring some great downtown Austin condos for sale on Sunday, June 1, from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Walk to a nearby food truck for lunch or pop into a few boutiques between seeing the city’s best examples of urban living spaces. Complimentary, air-conditioned shuttles will take attendees from one stop to the next, while booze and bites will be provided at tour stops along the way.
Some interesting tour stops this year include The Shore Condos, 360 Condos, The Sabine, Villas on Town Lake, and Capital Studios. There are a couple of the new apartment complexes on the Tour this year, as well as a boutique retail store and a coffee shop.
General Admission tickets are $18.50. Tickets may be purchased at http://atxdlt.com. Tickets will also be available the day of the tour at CRAVE for $25. A portion of the Downtown Living Tour proceeds benefit Pease Elementary and The Shoal Creek Conservancy.
Will Call, registration, and shuttle headquarters will be located at CRAVE Austin, where attendees can also enjoy free bubbles and bites before hopping on a shuttle.
If you are one of the first 150 people to buy tickets – you get the chance to win a pair of diamond earrings from Krugers! I’ve been told there are only a limited amount of these tickets left (and you have to choose GA with Goodie Bag ticket type) – so buy soon if you want to win some diamonds!
Downtown Living Tour | Presented by DANA
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