[Jdawgboy]

I used my cursor and did count 42 also.

You have to be steady like me grass hopper. :worship: :haha:

Where are you counting from on the green glass facade or the stone looking side? I do see that part of it does rise higher on that one side. It would be really interesting and exciting if they did raise the floors to 42 but I havn't heard that they have unless it just hasn't come out in the news probably because of the fact it had alot of opposition from OWANA.

[GoldenBoot]

Larger image of Spring... I count 42 stories plus two levels of mechanical penthouse...

http://img.coxnewsweb.com/B/04/66/90/image_3790664.jpg

[rjlevins]

Where are you counting from on the green glass facade or the stone looking side? I do see that part of it does rise higher on that one side. It would be really interesting and exciting if they did raise the floors to 42 but I havn't heard that they have unless it just hasn't come out in the news probably because of the fact it had alot of opposition from OWANA.

The height of the project won't be larger than 350', so regardless of how many floors they can squeeze in, it doesn't change the neighbors' concerns either way.

42 floors seems like a little much taking into account the parking garage and retail, which would have higher ceilings than the condo units. I'm not sayin it is impossible, but even point towers in Vancouver don't tend to squeeze in 42 floors within 350'. 36 floors was the original proposal, but I could see where they may been able to decrease the average ceiling height and possibly remove an extra level of parking or retail...who knows. Developers can get pretty creative when it comes to $$$.

[Mopacs]

Update from this morning's statesman:

http://www.statesman.com/business/content/business/stories/realestate/06/13downtown.html?COXnetJSessionIDbuild140=EO3120GqwqDLALZCyMIEkG18k4RKUx8IFIOlZ2wpZrwOh23VZAeN!-1440327554&UrAuth=%60N_NUObNWUbTTUWUXUWUZT[UUUWU^U^UZU\UbUcTYWYWZV&urcm=y

Downtown apartments, condos are on the rise

Red River Flats, 360 and Spring will add nearly 800 units to Austin fast-growing city center.

AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Tuesday, June 13, 2006

Downtown's residential scene continues to heat up, with work started on or scheduled to start on projects at the eastern and western perimeters. Combined, they will add almost 800 condominium or apartment units to one of Austin's fastest-growing neighborhoods.

Two of the three projects will be high-rises and will be among the tallest buildings downtown when they open.


360

Atlanta-based Novare Group Holdings LLC and its local partner, Andrews Urban LLC, named their condominium tower at West Third and Nueces streets 360 for its promised view. One distinctive feature will be a lighted glass spire.

Size: 44 floors, 432 units
Prices: One-bedroom units starting under $200,000; two-bedroom units under $300,000
Architects: Preston Partnership LLC, Atlanta
Status: Official groundbreaking is June 20. Project will open in late 2007.


http://img.coxnewsweb.com/B/06/66/90/image_3790666.jpg

Red River Flats
South Carolina-based Greystar Real Estate Partners' project is set for the former Reddy Ice site at Red River and East Ninth streets. It will have underground parking and an elevated pool overlooking Waller Creek.

Size: Four floors, 120 units
Prices: Monthly rents range from $1,350 to $2,520.
Architects: Steinberg Design Collaborative, Houston
Status: Under construction. The first units will be available in July 2007.

http://img.coxnewsweb.com/B/07/65/90/image_3790657.jpg



Spring

At 400 feet, Spring will be 280 feet higher than city rules allow on the western edge of downtown. The condominium tower at Third and Bowie streets, near the old Seaholm Power Plant, is being developed by Perry Lorenz, Larry Warshaw, Robert Barnstone and Diana Zuniga.

Size: 36 floors, 220 units
Prices: $200,000 to $400,000
Architects: Rafii Architects Inc., Vancouver, British Columbia; Morris Architects, Houston
Status: Groundbreaking scheduled for January, with opening in early 2008.

http://img.coxnewsweb.com/B/04/66/90/image_3790664.jpg

More info:

http://www.statesman.com/business/content/business/realestate/index.html#downtownliving

[KevinFromTexas]

Well, those parking levels look mighty low. I guess they figure few people living in a downtown urban residential tower probably wouldn't be owning an SUV. Then again I really don't see how they get could get away with not atleast allowing for taller vehicles. I have seen a few garages though where they have low ceilings. The garage for the Waller Creek Center on East 10th Street has a really low garage. We tried to go in there with our van to take pics from the top of the garage of the skyline and our antenna scraped the concrete beams. So we decided not to go up. All the times before that I had been in there was in a car so it never mattered.

Residential towers usually do cram a lot of floors into the building. Look at Miami, Chicago and New York. They have 50 and 60 story towers that are only 500 to 600 feet tall. If those were office buildings you'd be talking about 700+ and 800+ foot buildings.

[AustinBob]

Well, those parking levels look mighty low. I guess they figure few people living in a downtown urban residential tower probably wouldn't be owning an SUV. Then again I really don't see how they get could get away with not atleast allowing for taller vehicles. I have seen a few garages though where they have low ceilings. The garage for the Waller Creek Center on East 10th Street has a really low garage. We tried to go in there with our van to take pics from the top of the garage of the skyline and our antenna scraped the concrete beams. So we decided not to go up. All the times before that I had been in there was in a car so it never mattered.

Residential towers usually do cram a lot of floors into the building. Look at Miami, Chicago and New York. They have 50 and 60 story towers that are only 500 to 600 feet tall. If those were office buildings you'd be talking about 700+ and 800+ foot buildings.

Makes you wonder if this isn't just another picture of a building to depict what Spring "might" look like...kind of like the first picture they used from a building in Vancouver. That's a lot of floors for 350'.

[SoCoRandy]

The first picture they used was from the architect's latest project, the Pomaria. It's similar, but not identical, to Spring. They sent this set of pictures to the reservation holders, calling them the renderings of the building, so this should be pretty accurate.

On a negative note, it looks like there are going to be more units per floor on this than the Pomaria, of a smaller size than the Pomaria. That's too bad, but I understand the financial incentives to do so.

[Mopacs]

Update from Novare's 360 Website:

Construction Update
General Contractor J.E. Dunn began work at the 360 site in late May. Current onsite activities include clearing the site, laying out the column grid and other preparation work necessary to begin drilling for the foundations. An official groundbreaking ceremony is scheduled for June 20.

Sales Report
The sales center for 360 condominiums is on schedule to open later this year, with sales set to begin in early 2007. Look for an expanded website, including floorplans and updates on the sales process, to be in place at www.lifesurroundsyou.com (http://echo3.bluehornet.com/ct/ct.php?t=432184&c=623731197&m=m&type=1) later this summer

[GoldenBoot]

Makes you wonder if this isn't just another picture of a building to depict what Spring "might" look like...kind of like the first picture they used from a building in Vancouver. That's a lot of floors for 350'.

If built, Spring will be 400' tall...

[rjlevins]

If built, Spring will be 400' tall...

Yeah, oops, GoldenBoot is right. I thought council approved the ZAP recommendation for some reason. 400' was approved (staff rec) and so 42 stories seems much more likely. Sorry for the confusion, everyone.

[greenbelt]

We just drove by the ZOM/Monarch at lunch, and what appears to be a construction trailer, is now at the site. :tup:

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f386/streetwise2/ATT2396066.jpg

[KevinFromTexas]

Coolness.

[Jdawgboy]

Fence is up along 5th street for the Zom project.

Also look out for the first crane to go up very soon at AMILI. They have the base shaft up along 3rd street. Looks like it will be a dark color crane.

[KevinFromTexas]

So like, do my eyes deceive or were they building tower cranes Sunday at the AMLI site? I saw atleast one crawler crane at the site from I-35 and it had its boom 'up'. That's what they'll be using to put it together. When we came back by about 30 minutes ago it was too dark to see any cranes.

[Jdawgboy]

So like, do my eyes deceive or were they building tower cranes Sunday at the AMLI site? I saw atleast one crawler crane at the site from I-35 and it had its boom 'up'. That's what they'll be using to put it together. When we came back by about 30 minutes ago it was too dark to see any cranes.


Yes they are, Like I said when I went by the other day they already had the base part of the crane in place and yes there is a crawler crane on the site so sometime this week that crane will be up. The first of many cranes that will grace the Austin Skyline for at least the next 4 years.:banana:

[Jdawgboy]

Opps sorry Double post...


Oh I was wondering if anybody was going to head down to the 360 Site for the groundbreaking ceremony???

[427MM]

J, not a bad idea at all. I've just finished putting in some phone calls and as of the moment they are full at 250 RSVP, however, she said she would try to pull some strings and if something becomes available, she said it is possible.

[427MM]

Matter of fact that was a great idea, thanks J. I’m now on the reservation list. I’m going to have to skip a class to make it but life should continue. I’ll go crazy with my camera as usual and hopefully I should have an update of some kind by tomorrow. Is there anyone else on here that is going to attend? If so let me know and we can meet up.

[rjlevins]

Opps sorry Double post...


Oh I was wondering if anybody was going to head down to the 360 Site for the groundbreaking ceremony???

I am RSVP'd, but I'm not sure if I can make it due to a meeting. I plan on at least stopping by.

[Jdawgboy]

Im wondering if people can go on top of the state garage and look from above LOL. If anything I might try to do that. Would be a birds eye view of the whole lot as well.:D

[427MM]

It was a lot of fun and what's more, they were giving our free 360 coffee mugs. I ended up taking a lot of fun pictures including pics of Mayor Wynn with Jim Borders, CEO of Novare, and many others. Well, to attend I had to skip class so I need to go and try to catch up, I'll post some pics later.

[KevinFromTexas]

News on the ground breaking of 360...

From the Austin Business Journal
http://austin.bizjournals.com/austin/stories/2006/06/19/daily10.html?jst=b_ln_hl

44-story condo project breaks ground downtown

Austin Business Journal - 2:18 PM CDT Tuesday

Two real estate developers broke ground Tuesday on a new condominium development expected to become one of the tallest structures downtown.

Novare Group Holdings LLC and Andrews Urban LLC are turning dirt on the 360 Condominiums project, which will be a 44-story condominium tower with 432 residential units and about 13,500 square feet of street-level retail space.

The 580-foot-tall tower will be one the tallest buildings in downtown Austin, reaching 65 feet higher than Austin's current tallest building, the Frost Bank Tower.

The project is located on an abandoned parking lot in the southwest corner of downtown at Nueces and Third Streets, near the Austin Music Hall, La Zona Rosa, and Ballet Austin.

It was once set to become a parking garage by Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) before the company bailed out on its plans for a downtown Austin office complex.

[DrT]

It was a lot of fun and what's more, they were giving our free 360 coffee mugs. I ended up taking a lot of fun pictures including pics of Mayor Wynn with Jim Borders, CEO of Novare, and many others. Well, to attend I had to skip class so I need to go and try to catch up, I'll post some pics later.

I can't wait to see 'em --- wow, I thought they were going to quietly start without any fanfare groundbreaking. I guess even Novare figures a little press can't hurt.
I wish I could have been there. Glad you will share with all of us so we can live vicariously.:yes:

[Jdawgboy]

the Crane at the AMILI site is almost done. Probably by tomarrow evening the whole crane will be up.:cheers:

[427MM]

I started a thread over in Highrises. Go and vote! Voting is your right and duty, remember that kids. Here are a couple of pics of that little building from across the street.
http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/7517/img40190hq.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/605/img40650fv.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/518/img40647sl.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[greenbelt]

This image taken tonight from the 2nd street district (sorry it's a cell phone camera) but the sunset with the crane on block 21 was awesome.
http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f386/streetwise2/Image035.jpg

[CentralAustin]

How tall do you think the crane at AMLI is? I'm trying to imagine the height of the finished building, and wanted a point of comparison. Do you think the crane's about the same height as the building will be?

[greenbelt]

How tall do you think the crane at AMLI is? I'm trying to imagine the height of the finished building, and wanted a point of comparison. Do you think the crane's about the same height as the building will be?

The new AMILI will be 18 floors, I'm guess the crane is about that. You can see it from all over the city. Can't wait for the other cranes to join it (360 and ZOM). :D

[Jdawgboy]

I would think the crane would be a little taller than where the top of the building would be. Id say maybe around 20 stories. I mean the crane would need to be higher than the top of the building once it reaches that point to be able to move without ramming into the building.

[KevinFromTexas]

I thought I'd pass this along. Page Southerland Page has a rendering of the AMLI II on their website. They're the architecture firm designing it. It's the same rendering we've seen, just more clear.

Go here: - Click on 'Portfolio', it's the first building on the list.
http://www.pspaec.com/

Also, check out the University Medical Campus project in Round Rock. It's on the same page near the bottom of that list.

[greenbelt]

^ Images from the link you mentioned. Interesting to see all the height
happens at the north end of the lot. Anymore news on the W Hotel?

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f386/streetwise2/Picture18.png

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f386/streetwise2/Picture19.png

[427MM]

Everyone knows that the Monarch broke ground on June 23rd right? I ask because I'm not seeing anything about it. I've been house-sitting for a buddy of mine and busting my ass with school and work here of late and just figured someone would have heard of this. The 29 story tower should be complete in 23 months. So that is four awesome towers under-construction now.

AMLI- 18 Stories
Shore- 22 Stories
Monarch- 29 Stories
360- 44 Stories

Yea, I think it is safe to say that it is exciting around here once again.
BTW, today is my day to go up Frost again, expect another update sometime tomorrow.

[atx001]

^That's awesome!, I was wondering the same thing about the Monarch

because at least in rendering the Monarch has one of my favorite designs. If it

turns out anything like the Mondrian in Dallas (which was also done by ZOM) this

building should be pretty nice. I got to see the Mondrian in person and it was

a really neat looking building.

[JRCool]

Btw..They now have a rendering up at the Amli II site. Its pretty cool!!

[Jdawgboy]

Tomarrow is the first of the month so that means I'll be out taking pictures of the progress of these sites.

[427MM]

Tomarrow is the first of the month so that means I'll be out taking pictures of the progress of these sites.

Sweet, I look forward to seeing them. I'll post the pics I took yesterday later on tonight.

[427MM]

6th and Brushy
http://img67.imageshack.us/img67/4249/img44603um.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Working hard on the Monarch, soon to be Austin's tallest apartment tower.
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/374/img44699bs.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Working on 360
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/2790/img44746ze.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img67.imageshack.us/img67/2711/img44763ze.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

AMLI and Novare
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/4495/img44826lw.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img106.imageshack.us/img106/5121/img44921ln.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

I get very excited when I'm on top of Frost
http://img97.imageshack.us/img97/6682/img45028go.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Almost finished
http://img106.imageshack.us/img106/8697/img44944xn.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

The Shore
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/5364/img44881oc.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Vertigo rocks!
http://img106.imageshack.us/img106/1856/img45162zn.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Dang cord
http://img106.imageshack.us/img106/4955/img45145qf.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img106.imageshack.us/img106/4937/img45297sg.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Quite a tricky pic to take
http://img106.imageshack.us/img106/3642/img45308tn.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Ditto above
http://img106.imageshack.us/img106/9894/img45156qe.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img67.imageshack.us/img67/4432/img44599dk.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img117.imageshack.us/img117/2645/img44734ez.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

For the past week we have been fortunate enough to leave our austere apartment behind and house-sit for a coworker of mine. He lives in the new Saltillo Lofts and the past nine days have been a lot of fun. Here are a few pics.
http://img117.imageshack.us/img117/9862/img44538vd.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img117.imageshack.us/img117/7152/img44544ye.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img97.imageshack.us/img97/1504/img44556og.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

While we were there they were doing work on the future commuter rail line which runs mere feet from our front door.
http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/3694/img44494sw.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

An engineers perspective
http://img117.imageshack.us/img117/9797/img44489uc.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/5133/img44431ol.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

I love Austin!

[JRCool]

Thats so cool that you can get to the top of Frosty like that. I'm guessing you know someone there?

[Jdawgboy]

Great pictures!!! Unfortunatly I have yet to go on my trip downtown. Was going to yesterday but so much came up that I wasnt able to make it nor today either. I will probably go tomarrow.

[KevinFromTexas]

Frosty from a train.

Cool pics as usual. Great to see that crane for AMLI. It looks like it's around 250 feet tall.

[greenbelt]

Great pic Spiderman! This town is awesome as is, but the next wave will really give us a nice skyline. Can't wait.

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f386/streetwise2/skyline8.jpg

BTW, saw Superman Returns today. Great flick. And, Kate Bosworth wasn't bad either! :tup:

[Trae]

When does t. stacy break ground? That building looks great. How tall is it? Austin is really doing it.

Congress Towers looks good, too.

[21bl0wed]

Great pic Spiderman! This town is awesome as is, but the next wave will really give us a nice skyline. Can't wait.

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f386/streetwise2/skyline8.jpg

BTW, saw Superman Returns today. Great flick. And, Kate Bosworth wasn't bad either! :tup:

They have announced a W and a Four Seasons for Austin? When? :koko:

[KevinFromTexas]

^ Austin already has a Four Seasons Hotel, it opened in 1987. It's a 10-story building. The Four Seasons depicted in that rendering above is a 35-story residential tower that would be managed by the same people as the hotel and would have the same ammenities as hotel guests. The new residential tower would be located immediately east of the hotel.

The W-Hotel is slated for the new 402 foot 36-story "Block 21 Tower". This building will stand directly north of the city hall.

Austin is also in the running for another luxury hotel, possibly a Ritz-Carlton Hotel. Right now this is still in planning. We haven't heard much about it for a while. There's not really been any mention of size and height or how many rooms. But the building will front Congress Avenue so it'll likely be atleast 20 floors.

[greenbelt]

^Kev, Thanks for clearing up 21bl0wed's remark. :notacrook:

[Jdawgboy]

Yea I was like um okay and was going to say something but didn't. Better to keep my mouth shut in that instance hehe...

What was this :koko: all about???

[21bl0wed]

^ Austin already has a Four Seasons Hotel, it opened in 1987. It's a 10-story building. The Four Seasons depicted in that rendering above is a 35-story residential tower that would be managed by the same people as the hotel and would have the same ammenities as hotel guests. The new residential tower would be located immediately east of the hotel.

The W-Hotel is slated for the new 402 foot 36-story "Block 21 Tower". This building will stand directly north of the city hall.

Austin is also in the running for another luxury hotel, possibly a Ritz-Carlton Hotel. Right now this is still in planning. We haven't heard much about it for a while. There's not really been any mention of size and height or how many rooms. But the building will front Congress Avenue so it'll likely be atleast 20 floors.

When was all this announced? I thought i knew about all of austins proposals :shrug:

[Jdawgboy]

The W hotel has actually been out for a few months now when they released the new building rendering and announced that the W hotel would be apart of the project. The 4 Seasons Residencies was a project that actually was supposed to start a few years back but was put on hold durring the recession. It has since been re-announced and has increased from 28 stories from the origional proposal to 35 stories now.

[21bl0wed]

You guys needa talk more about those proposals too! I guess its hard seeing some of the first starting construction though...Hopefully most get built.

[GoldenBoot]

When does t. stacy break ground? That building looks great. How tall is it? Austin is really doing it.

Congress Towers looks good, too.

T.Stacy's Fifth & Congress tower is slated to be somewhere between 700' & 750' His two renderings he showed seem to fall in this range. Depending on the footprint of the building, his zoning could allow for more height.

[21bl0wed]

Yea I was like um okay and was going to say something but didn't. Better to keep my mouth shut in that instance hehe...

What was this :koko: all about???

Because i had no idea - about actually 3 of the buildings in that future skyline. All i hear is Novare, 360, zom, spring. How was i supposed to know there was more? Especially a W that would be big news surprised i didn't hear more about it. And this :koko: is my new favorite smiley.

[CentralAustin]

Here's more information about the W: http://www.urbanaustin.org/index.php/W_Hotel_%26_Residences

[rjlevins]

Because i had no idea - about actually 3 of the buildings in that future skyline. All i hear is Novare, 360, zom, spring. How was i supposed to know there was more? Especially a W that would be big news surprised i didn't hear more about it. And this :koko: is my new favorite smiley.

360, Monarch, and Spring get the most talk because two of them have broken ground within the last month and the other released new renderings not too long ago. Block 21 (W Hotel/ACL Studios/Children's Museum) hasn't had any official announcements lately. Sorry, I guess us Austinites need to do a bit more to keep people updated on our construction status.

Honestly...It's getting to the point where I have to think really hard on what's been announced. There are a lot of projects...feels like Dallas now...something new every week.

[21bl0wed]

:previous: Spring is 38 stories correct? What is the exact height?

[maczter]

Hi. I've been lurking for a bit, but I found a link that I figured most of you would find useful, so I'm coming out of hiding. :)

While looking for more info on the Monarch, I stumbled across this page on the City of Austin web site that has all kinds of info about Downtown development and, best of all (IMHO), about half way down, there's a link to a PDF of a poster that shows the location and gives a brief description and, in some cases, pics of the buildings that are in the pipeline...

http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/downtown/

Enjoy!

[KevinFromTexas]

:previous: Spring is 38 stories correct? What is the exact height?

The announced height was 36 floors. The city approved the building for up to 400 feet. But it may be taller than that with mechanical rooftop stuff, (elevator penthouse and air conditioning equipment). One building elevation indicated it might go as high as 450 feet. Some of us actually counted 42 floors in the updated rendering also. Not sure about that though. I like to just sit back and keep my eyes and ears open and keep my fingers crossed that this stuff will happen. But I don't try to get my hopes up too much since there's so much being proposed it's unlikely that it will all be built. But, we can dream!

[GoldenBoot]

Hi. I've been lurking for a bit, but I found a link that I figured most of you would find useful, so I'm coming out of hiding. :)

While looking for more info on the Monarch, I stumbled across this page on the City of Austin web site that has all kinds of info about Downtown development and, best of all (IMHO), about half way down, there's a link to a PDF of a poster that shows the location and gives a brief description and, in some cases, pics of the buildings that are in the pipeline...

http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/downtown/

Enjoy!

Thanks and Welcome to the Forum! That particular page has been out for years. Most of us in here are very familiar with it. The City's Economic Development Department maintains that page and puts out updates every quarter. However, please do not hesitate to let us know of any sites you may run across. You might be the one who finds something new!!!

Again, welcome!

[KevinFromTexas]

Yes, welcome to the forum and never be afraid to post something even if you're not sure if it's been posted before. I'd rather something be posted and be duplicated rather than it not be posted and have us all miss out on something cool. Again, welcome to the forum.

[maczter]

Thanks for the welcome and sorry for the http://extremespin.org/forum/images/smilies/random/repost.gif.

I ddin't see any mention of it here in the Austin update thread, so figured there might be some other folks who hadn't seen it. The poster is handy to get a better idea of where all this new development is going to pop up. Still working on getting my wife to entertain the idea of city life and selling the lawn mower. :P She's hell bent on having her big weed box...err....garden, so I've got my work cut out for me. :) Given that her office is moving next door to City Hall next month, you'd think she'd be jumping at the idea, but no luck yet. Maybe she'll grow to like the idea after she's been working down there for a while?

[427MM]

Hey good luck with that. I'm in the same boat with my fiancée. She has agreed to give me until our first child is two at which time she says that we will need to migrate to the burbs.:yuck: Hopefully after a couple of years she will warm up to living downtown permanently, if not I'll claim our retirement years.:)

[GoldenBoot]

FYI - A new, clearer rendering of the W Austin Hotel & Residences...


http://texas.construction.com/images/0607_bldg1.jpg


I'm still not sold on this design. Seems quite boring to me!

[KevinFromTexas]

Here's the article on The Monarch from the business journal today.

From the Austin Business Journal
http://austin.bizjournals.com/austin/stories/2006/07/03/daily25.html?surround=lfn

29-story residential tower taking shape downtown
Austin Business Journal - 8:55 AM CDT Friday

Another high-rise residential development has broken ground in downtown Austin.

Construction started last week on The Monarch, a 29-story rental development at the corner of Fifth Street and West Avenue across from Whole Foods Market. The project headed by ZOM Inc. is expected to take two years to complete.

The Monarch will include 305 apartments, ranging from 890 square feet to 2,400 square feet. In addition, the project will feature 9,000 square feet of retail space.

Orlando-based ZOM opened its Texas office in Dallas in 2001. The Monarch is the company's fifth project in Texas.

Kevin Wisdom, principal of ZOM Texas Inc., says the company is interested in doing more developments in Austin. "It's a very attractive city for many reasons: lifestyle, the employment base, it has a very vibrant downtown core," he says. "We've not yet identified another site to proceed with but we do continue to examine opportunities."

[maczter]

Hey good luck with that. I'm in the same boat with my fiancée. She has agreed to give me until our first child is two at which time she says that we will need to migrate to the burbs.:yuck: Hopefully after a couple of years she will warm up to living downtown permanently, if not I'll claim our retirement years.:)

Maybe we could work a trade? How's a limestone bungalow on a quiet north austin cul-de-sac sound? ;)

[zaphod]

wow, you sure must have some connections..getting into the crown of the frost tower and then getting to go for a ride on the locomotive of the rail construction crew...

[427MM]

wow, you sure must have some connections..getting into the crown of the frost tower and then getting to go for a ride on the locomotive of the rail construction crew...

Right place at the right time is more like it.

[427MM]

Has anyone noticed the new paint job on Crown Plaza? It is no longer that light brown, now it is a darker brown. As of yesterday they were finishing the eastern front. Looks better than it did. I'm happy to see that the new towers that have broken ground as of late are departing from that sw motif. The colors of the new Marriot are awful IMO. Now I'm glad it is as squat as it is.

[Jdawgboy]

Has anyone noticed the new paint job on Crown Plaza? It is no longer that light brown, now it is a darker brown. As of yesterday they were finishing the eastern front. Looks better than it did. I'm happy to see that the new towers that have broken ground as of late are departing from that sw motif. The colors of the new Marriot are awful IMO. Now I'm glad it is as squat as it is.


No kidding, That whole section of downtown especially when you pass Congress on Second you look over and see the Marriot, Hampton, Hilton wich all look exactly the same in color though Marriot has a little pinker tones on part of it. Its like what the hell?! Did the designers just get tired or lazy and decided to make it all look alike. I can't wait till we get some tower proposals for that area so we can get those buildings blended in with some other styles.

[the1]

Its a .... beautiful day in the neighborhood, a beautiful day in the neighborhood.....would 25k people in downtown be my neighbor.

[GoldenBoot]

Its a .... beautiful day in the neighborhood, a beautiful day in the neighborhood.....would 25k people in downtown be my neighbor.


Ahh...So you haven't seen today's Austin Business Journal!?!

I'm trying to find a way to clip the article, which came out today, in the July 14-20 edition of the ABJ. But, in a nutshell, the article says that under existing conditions, there will not be enough housing options to provide space for even 20,000 people in "Downtown Austin." To achieve the Mayor's goal, the city will have to make some major changes (zoning, capital view corridors, expansion of the CBD borders, etc.).

Changes will occur, but this is meant to be a "wake-up call" to city leaders!

[Jdawgboy]

There are barracade walls stacked up on the parking lot that 101 Colorado will be going up on. Looks like they will be closing that parking lot soon. I guess they want to start around the 1st of August..

[KevinFromTexas]

It's about damn time. I think out of all the projects this one of the ones I've been looking forward to the most. It'll be a nice addition to the skyline and downtown.

[427MM]

As I'm sure you have all figured out, I'm skipping my monthly visit to the roof of Frost due to time restraints and the fact that it would look roughly the same as my last visit. With Cousins pretty much trading Frost for 191 Peachtree, I'm not so sure how this little agreement I have is going to work out in the future. Hopefully nothing will change in which case I shall continue photographing our changing city from the top of this masterpiece.

[KevinFromTexas]

Well, Cousins won't be the owners anymore, but they'll still manage it. And the managers pretty much have the say with what happens with the building. They're the people you meet at the front desk in the lobby. All the same people should still be there also, so you'll probably still have your contact there.

[427MM]

You just made my day if you're right. Are you sure? I know that when they sold BOA Atlanta recently they announced that they will remain in control of managing the building, did you hear the same about frost? If so, that is just great. I can't wait to see T-Stacy's building go up from that vantage. Not to mention the myriad other projects.

[bluedogok]

I read in The Statesman that Cousins will manage Frost for now.

[KevinFromTexas]

Are you sure?

Yes, here's the link to the thread about the sale of the building with the article.

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=112314

^ From that article: This quote is actually from the Austin Business Journal.

Cousins Properties will continue to manage Frost Bank Tower after the closing, though its unclear how long that arrangement will last. The company has a number of ongoing projects in the market, including a new office complex planned in Northwest Austin.

[Jdawgboy]

Heres the rendering for the Legacy Tower.

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a109/JDawgboy/res_dev_town_lake_elevation.jpg

[JAM]

Sorry to post here, couldn't find a thread unique to the new Austin Fed Court House.

anyone happen to know if they will reuse any part of the old Intel bldg. also anyone know how they will demolish the Intel bldg? Will it be dismantled or will they implode it?

[rad707]

Sorry to post here, couldn't find a thread unique to the new Austin Fed Court House.

anyone happen to know if they will reuse any part of the old Intel bldg. also anyone know how they will demolish the Intel bldg? Will it be dismantled or will they implode it?


they're not using the shell. i think it's coming down this month, probably by dismantling - there's not enough there to justify dynamite.

[427MM]

A white tower crane is almost complete off of MLK at the new UT hotel site.

[Lextx97]

Sorry to post here, couldn't find a thread unique to the new Austin Fed Court House.

anyone happen to know if they will reuse any part of the old Intel bldg. also anyone know how they will demolish the Intel bldg? Will it be dismantled or will they implode it?

Anyone happen to know what will be done with the old Austin Fed Court House? :shrug:

[KevinFromTexas]

MetLife, also known as 101 Colorado. It looks like she's finally a go!

From the Austin American-Statesman

Jay Janner
AMERICAN-STATESMAN
http://img.coxnewsweb.com/B/08/01/79/image_4679018.jpg
Construction barriers are in place at Second and Colorado streets for the 101 Colorado St. apartment high-rise. In 2004, plans called for 202 units in a 28-story tower, but the revised design is 36 stories, with 258 units.

Map of its location:
http://img.coxnewsweb.com/B/00/02/79/image_4679020.jpg

The rendering for the MetLife Tower, also known as 101 Colorado.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/Austin%20renderings/Austin101Coloradorenderingupdated.jpg

Downtown high-rise will soar even higher
MetLife project, more than two years in the making, is ready to get under way.

By Shonda Novak
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF

Wednesday, August 09, 2006

A downtown residential high-rise more than two years in the making is finally ready to start construction — with eight more floors than the original plans envisioned.

MetLife and partner the Hanover Co. are building the 36-story apartment tower at 101 Colorado St., next door to MetLife's 22-story office tower at 100 Congress Ave.

"I think New York City just arrived in Austin!" said David Armbrust, a well-known real estate lawyer who works on the 13th floor of the office building.

In 2004, when the project was announced, the plans called for 202 units in a 28-story tower, with townhouses facing Congress and a curved roof.

The revised design is 36 stories, with 258 units, including three live-work units facing Cesar Chavez Street and nearly 1,000 square feet of street-level retail.

Construction barriers already are in place and demolition of the drive-in bank that now occupies the site could begin this week. The first residents could move in by fall 2008.

"Obviously, to add eight stories, that speaks volumes about their belief in the strength of the downtown Austin residential market," Armbrust said.

Cynthia Birdwell, Hanover's director of marketing, said Austin "has been interested in bringing additional residents into downtown, and this was an opportunity to support that goal."

The company did not need a variance from the city for the additional height, she said.

HKS Architects, which designed the Whole Foods Market headquarters and flagship store on North Lamar Boulevard at West Sixth Street, designed the apartment project. The development has a tower rising on the north side of the site, with a lower-profile structure facing Town Lake.

Mayor Will Wynn has said his vision for a lively downtown includes 25,000 residents by 2015 — a fivefold increase — and there is no shortage of developers ready to meet the demand.

Projects under construction or planned for downtown would add more than 3,000 living units, with more slated to be built south of downtown. Work has started on six projects, and several more are expected to break ground in early 2007.

Work should start Feb. 1 on Spring, a 36-story condominium tower at Third and Bowie streets, said Robert Barnstone, one of the project's developers.

Rafii Architects of Vancouver, British Columbia, is designing the slender tower. Austin-based Dick Clark Architects will design the interiors of the 220 units.

Just south of downtown, Crescent Resources LLC, a subsidiary of Duke Energy, plans to start work in early 2007 on Aquaterra, a 19-story, 173-unit condominium tower at 210 Barton Springs Road.

Crescent is advertising the project aggressively, and the campaign has generated a high level of interest, said Steven Brandt, vice president of Crescent's Texas operations.

The project will cost almost $50 million and should be finished in late 2008, Brandt said.

[KevinFromTexas]

New night time rendering of Spring here. This was with the above article.

Spring will rise in Austin's West End at the northeast corner of Bowie Street and West 3rd Street. It's planned and approved to be 400 feet tall with 36 floors. It'll have 220 condominiums. This will make it the tallest in Austin's West End. It'll be located 10 blocks west of the Frost Bank Tower.

RAFII ARCHITECTS
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/Austin%20renderings/AustinrenderingsSpringatnight.jpg
Spring, a 36-story condominium tower at Third and Bowie streets, is set to begin construction in February and will hold 220 units.

Daytime rendering:
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b234/KevinFromTexas/Austin%20renderings/AustinrenderingsSpring.jpg

[OfCourse]

wow, this bites, guys. not that this has much to do with anything, but Maria's Taco Xpress on S. Lamar & Bluebonnet is going to be demolished on Aug. 13 to make way for a Walgreens of all things. :(

[Mopacs]

wow, this bites, guys. not that this has much to do with anything, but Maria's Taco Xpress on S. Lamar & Bluebonnet is going to be demolished on Aug. 13 to make way for a Walgreens of all things. :(

If memory serves correct, Walgreens had agreed to relocate Taco Xpress to another location on the same property? I could be wrong...perhaps things have changed.

[OfCourse]

^^^ That's what I was thinking, as well, but I don't know. There is a little building going up behind Taco Xpress and next to Walgreens that looks Maria's-ish, but who knows. I went to lunch there today and there were little signs all over the place that said it was going to be demolished and there was going to be a "goodbye party". Either way, I hope they are relocating. I love stuffing my face w/ those gorditas. Yum.

Well, c'est la vie. If it's gone, it's gone. If it's relocating, terrific.

[rad707]

Look behind the Walgreens next time you drive by. The bigger and better Maria's opens soon. By the way, she's thrilled with the change.

[OfCourse]

^^^ Yeah, I looked back there and saw some little building off to the side. I had a hunch it was going to be Maria's, but by the way the little signs were worded, I thought it was gone for good. That and I don't know what's going on half the time so I didn't know she was going to relocate. Oops! :rolleyes: Now I know. Thanks a lotta. :)

[427MM]

Ayudarme, por favor. I've been thinking that the pics coming from the top of Frost are bound to get very exciting in the next couple of months. So, to make it easier on the visitors who don't know every detail about every project by heart, I am compiling a list of all buildings within a mile or so of the capital which are presently under construction, or recently completed. This list will be displayed on Page 1. I have not been doing too good a job of saving all the wonderful pics that have come out on all of our projects. I'm imploring all you wonderful Austinites to post any and all pics of project currently under construction.
Thanks

BTW, I didn't post 101 yet because as of yesterday they still didn't have their demo permit. Hopefully, they will be receiving it some time this week, in which case I will add that beauty immediately.

[KevinFromTexas]

I have pretty much all of them saved on my computer, and uploaded to my Photobucket account for posting on the forum. I can PM you the links to them all, then you can just copy and paste those links into your post. Or I'll PM them to you, and you can save them, and get your own Photobucket account and post them in your post.

Photobucket is free, go to http://photobucket.com/

Wait, don't you already have an Imageshack account? You can use that also.

[KevinFromTexas]

There's an article in the paper from today about the Taco Express demo. Walgreens rocks.

From the Austin American-Statesman
http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/local/08/11kelso.html

COMMENTARY: JOHN KELSO
Forget Texas; don't mess with South Austin taco joint owner

Thursday, August 10, 2006

So how did Maria Corbalan, the salty owner of Taco Xpress on South Lamar Boulevard, manage to get a major chain like Walgreens to build her a brand new taco joint?

"Uh, with miniskirts and cleavage," Maria said. Now that's what I call the old-fashioned business model.

f you want to see the old Taco Xpress, the popular South Austin landmark with the "No Pants No Problem" sign on the front door, this weekend could be your last chance. On Sunday, Maria will hold a demolition party at her restaurant from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

She figures Sunday will be her last day of business in the old location and that the construction crews will level the place Tuesday or Wednesday. She hopes to reopen in her new place — located right behind the old place — by Wednesday. If she can get the city permits she needs in time.

"I've been busting my (butt) to make it (the new place) look old and funky, and it's going to be sad to lose it (the old place)," Maria said. "I've had two divorces in that building and lost two dogs and a couple of customers and friends are gone, but I finally scored."

So who do you miss more, Maria, the husbands or the dogs? "Whatever (stuff) you want to put, honey," she said. I'm putting my money on the husbands being missed more, since Maria borrowed $250,000 from one of her exes to buy the acre of land she's putting her new restaurant on.

"My first husband loaned me the money to buy me the property, but because he's my ex, I've got to pay him back," Maria said. "Not everything is perfect in this world, John."

Not, it's not perfect, but it's closing in on it for Maria, who says she is getting a sweet deal from Walgreens. It was not always this way. Maria has had to fight off developers to stay on. Five years ago it was looking like Trammell Crow was going to buy the tract Maria's restaurant was sharing with a trailer park and turn the whole place into high-end apartments. Lucky for her, that deal fell through. But before it did, Maria says she got crosswise with Trammell Crow when the developer's offer to move her fell short of her career goals.

"They said, 'We'll give you $20,000 and a pickup truck,' and I said, '. . . You're insulting me,' " Maria recalled. "I said, 'I might look like a dump, and I have leaks in the roof, but I can run my numbers by you, dude.' "

Then along came the Walgreens Co., which bought two acres of the tract to put in a drugstore with a drive-through. To help ease itself into the South Austin neighborhood without going to war with an icon, the company agreed to build Maria a new restaurant on the property next to the drugstore. She says at first Walgreens offered to build her a new place if she'd move to a new spot on the tract — without owning the spot.

Uh uh, she said. She just didn't want to face the possibility of having to move later. She had been down that road before and she didn't want to go again. "They wanted to give me just a restaurant and I said no, I'm not going to go to another place unless I own the land," she said.

Some customers worry that the new joint won't be as funky as the old place. And it is decidedly funky. The tiny restaurant features a dirt patio decorated with the Queen Elizabeth-looking Santa Taqueria del Austin Sur (Saint Taco Place of South Austin). This is a life-size doll, displayed under glass. But that piece of art will make the move to the new place, along with much of the old junk. This includes the painting on the front window that shows the chihuahua saying, "!Yo Quiero Taco X-Press!"

"These walls mean a lot to me, and I will cry when they knock it down, but let's look at the positive side of the moon, like Pink Floyd," Maria said. She has visited the dark side of the moon to find old stuff to decorate her new place to make it look old. Like the old rusting pickup truck that'll be parked outside the new restaurant.

"And now we deliver, too," Maria said, joking about the bucket-of-rust truck. "I found it in a junk yard. The grass was growing all the way to the windows, and I said, 'I want it.' And he delivered it in a trailer."

And yes, the statue of Maria that used to live on the roof of the old place will be moved to the new spot. The statue has been away for repairs, after vandals climbed up on the roof and cut off the arms.

Now the likeness of Maria is going to be harder to mess with, though, since at the new restaurant Maria will put it on top of a tall pole.

"I'm going to put some Vaseline on the pole so they cannot climb it," she said.

I assume she'll be buying the Vaseline from Walgreens.

[bluedogok]

Walgreens doesn't develop, they contract with developers on build-to-suit projects. Most are long term leases but a few are bought turn-key. I did about 20 Walgreens stores in Oklahoma and only one was a turn-key project because it was an alpha corner in Enid. I also went to a Walgreens architects conference at the headquaters in Deerfield, IL and they stated that was their preferred method of expansion. It gave them some flexibility if demographics shift.

A few of the projects had multiple components if it was a location that they really wanted. They must have really wanted this project and made it worth the developers time.

[Jdawgboy]

We should see the crane going up at 360 this week. They got the crawler crane there and have all the pieces of the blue crane that will grace Austin's sky for the next year and a half to 2 years.

[rad707]

We should see the crane going up at 360 this week. They got the crawler crane there and have all the pieces of the blue crane that will grace Austin's sky for the next year and a half to 2 years.

I've been watching the 360 crane go up from my window today. Once we get the crane up at Met Life things will really look cool downtown.

[Jdawgboy]

Yea I saw it too, it looks great. Also there is another crane going up at the AMILI site I noticed as well.

[rjlevins]

Yea I saw it too, it looks great. Also there is another crane going up at the AMILI site I noticed as well.

I saw them setting the "arm" into place. There were a couple guys just walking along it as if it was nothing. I was flipping out for them. I could not imagine walking on a beam 200-300' in the air. I would shiz my pants!

The cranes are taking over Austin. The 360 one is HOT! It gives you a reality shock on what a building there will look like. I'm excited.

[KevinFromTexas]

Good to hear that. Too bad it's been so hot lately, geez today was 104F I think. I'd love to get down there and spend the day goofing off, but the heat sucks.

[Mopacs]

Updated info from Novare via their Email Newsletter, including Pics:




E-Newsletter - Vol. III / August 2006




News

Sales for 360 will begin in early 2007. As a member of the website registration list, you will be notified in advance with details on the sales process.
The current website, www.LifeSurroundsYou.com (http://echo3.bluehornet.com/ct/ct.php?t=543276&c=729598465&m=m&type=1), will be expanded by the end of August and will feature a map to check out what‘s in your future neighborhood and floor plans to preview the residences.

Upcoming e-newsletters from 360 will ensure that you stay up-to-date on information and events hosted by 360 during the fall and winter.



Construction Update



http://echo3.bluehornet.com/cimages/964fb36d6095a9c9e44f684bd09029/360%20Crane4%20(crop).JPG

http://echo3.bluehornet.com/cimages/964fb36d6095a9c9e44f684bd09029/360%20pic%202.jpg

Since 360’s groundbreaking ceremony in July, general contractor JE Dunn has completed the site work and foundations. Progress continues, and the above-ground concrete parking structure will soon be seen over the construction fence.

[21bl0wed]

So they started construction on 360 without preselling any units? isn't that kind of risky? How is construction being funded?

[427MM]

So they started construction on 360 without preselling any units? isn't that kind of risky? How is construction being funded?

As far as I can remember, this is the way Novare has always done it. They are pre-selling the Atlantic, in Atlanta, but I think that has to do with the announcement of so many competing towers, including Trump Atlanta.