AUSTIN | 405 Colorado Street | 356 FEET | 25 FLOORS | Completed

[Jdawgboy]

Originally Posted by freerover

Here is an informative study on the parking issue downtown: http://www.austintexas.gov/edims/document.cfm?id=291336

Thanks for posting that. I'll need to go over it more thoroughly when I have more time but from skimming over, the conclusion is there is underutilized parking in the garages. It's also true that some garages are confusing when it comes to signage. It looks like It's got some great suggestions but the city has to follow through.

[Armybrat]

The 405 Colorado proposal looks like a molar that's in dire need of a root canal.

[JACKinBeantown]

Originally Posted by Armybrat

The 405 Colorado proposal looks like a molar that's in dire need of a root canal.

(like button)

[AustinGoesVertical]

GC is lined up and this is slated for a December 2018 groundbreaking. Interestingly, the site is currently housing a pop-up HQ for a new type of grassroots political party called “indie”

[The ATX]

Originally Posted by AustinGoesVertical

GC is lined up and this is slated for a December 2018 groundbreaking. Interestingly, the site is currently housing a pop-up HQ for a new type of grassroots political party called “indie”

This is back at AULCC, and it does have December listed as the estimated start date. I hope "indie" can find a new HQ by then.

[Jdawgboy]

That Indie Party building was a SXSW popup venue and as far as I can tell has mostly been sitting there empty since. This is the first time that I know of that a SXSW pop up venue has been kept up after SXSW ended.

[chinchaaa]

Originally Posted by Jdawgboy

That Indie Party building was a SXSW popup venue and as far as I can tell has mostly been sitting there empty since. This is the first time that I know of that a SXSW pop up venue has been kept up after SXSW ended.

I heard it's staying until the election.

[llamaorama]

What poor sucker is going to drive up that many ramps to get a spot? Looks like hell.

[KevinFromTexas]

While riding up a garage in West Campus a week ago, I realized the ride up to the top is probably more than a mile. In fact, it's more than I thought it was. The garage runs the whole length of its block - 370 feet. It's also 10 floors tall. Just the ride up there is ~7,400 feet. And that's without counting the ride down. By the time you've ridden back down, it's about 1,000 feet shy of 3 miles.

[Sigaven]

Originally Posted by KevinFromTexas

While riding up a garage in West Campus a week ago, I realized the ride up to the top is probably more than a mile. In fact, it's more than I thought it was. The garage runs the whole length of its block - 370 feet. It's also 10 floors tall. Just the ride up there is ~7,400 feet. And that's without counting the ride down. By the time you've ridden back down, it's about 1,000 feet shy of 3 miles.

insanity. Just the 4 story drive up my apartment building's parking garage every day drives me bananas. I can't imagine driving up 12 floors every day. Then coming down in traffic at night.

[urbancore]

Originally Posted by Sigaven

insanity. Just the 4 story drive up my apartment building's parking garage every day drives me bananas. I can't imagine driving up 12 floors every day. Then coming down in traffic at night.

I think that is why you see a LOT of dusty cars in parking garages. Milago was full of them. People park it and leave it, look for other ways to commute. The national trend of urbanization might be one of the many reasons why Amazon is so popular, no need to run errands for relatively trivial/small items.

Within 20 years, autonomous cars will reduce the need for these garages. It would be cool if they can re-purpose garages into additional units down the road.

[the Genral]

Originally Posted by Dcbrickley

I think that is why you see a LOT of dusty cars in parking garages. Milago was full of them. People park it and leave it, look for other ways to commute. The national trend of urbanization might be one of the many reasons why Amazon is so popular, no need to run errands for relatively trivial/small items.

Within 20 years, autonomous cars will reduce the need for these garages. It would be cool if they can re-purpose garages into additional units down the road.

Well they certainly would be sound proofed from the unit above, but they probably would have really low ceilings, and an uphill walk to the bathroom.

[Sigaven]

Originally Posted by Dcbrickley

I think that is why you see a LOT of dusty cars in parking garages. Milago was full of them. People park it and leave it, look for other ways to commute. The national trend of urbanization might be one of the many reasons why Amazon is so popular, no need to run errands for relatively trivial/small items.

Within 20 years, autonomous cars will reduce the need for these garages. It would be cool if they can re-purpose garages into additional units down the road.

There are some garages in Europe that are built with this in mind - future repurposing as habitable space.

[AusTxDevelopment]

I hadn't seen this posted yet. Based on the renderings, I assumed the front of the building would stick out at an angle due to that V-shaped indention, but from these elevations it looks fairly flat.

That parking garage will be 157 feet tall from grade. Gotta say I hate that huge blank wall on the backside of this building. The elevations are from the last page of the plans: ftp://ftp.ci.austin.tx.us/ATD_AULCC/...ce_PLAN_02.pdf

[GoldenBoot]

Originally Posted by AusTxDevelopment

I hadn't seen this posted yet. Based on the renderings, I assumed the front of the building would stick out at an angle due to that V-shaped indention, but from these elevations it looks fairly flat.

That parking garage will be 157 feet tall from grade. Gotta say I hate that huge blank wall on the backside of this building. The elevations are from the last page of the plans: ftp://ftp.ci.austin.tx.us/ATD_AULCC/...ce_PLAN_02.pdf

That feature cannot sick out beyond a certain point from the property line. And at basically 100% impervious cover, there is no room for anything to stick out. Thus, the "flat" look.

However, the "v" will be indented into the building...

[Sigaven]

Originally Posted by AusTxDevelopment

I hadn't seen this posted yet. Based on the renderings, I assumed the front of the building would stick out at an angle due to that V-shaped indention, but from these elevations it looks fairly flat.

That parking garage will be 157 feet tall from grade. Gotta say I hate that huge blank wall on the backside of this building. The elevations are from the last page of the plans: ftp://ftp.ci.austin.tx.us/ATD_AULCC/...ce_PLAN_02.pdf

I think you might be thinking of Republic Tower?

This was always gonna be a cube on the bottom with a crystal on top.

[Jdawgboy]

Not only is the podium not needed, that blank wall is just as bad. I know that it's due to the building going right up to the property line (though if that's the case how is there one row of windows?) Doesn't look on the diagram that the windows are indented.

[The ATX]

Here's something that might give hope for those hating on parking podiums. It's an article about Gensler designing buildings for the future. From the article:

“Buildings we're designing today, where there might have been parking underneath—subterranean parking in a lot of cases—have to be designed for the era of driverless cars with major, major drop-off and pickup areas,” Cohen said. “We are literally designing garages with higher ceilings, flat garages, with a skin that can be made to look like an office building so that you can convert it later on.”

https://www.forbes.com/sites/alanohn.../#14ea91f97244

[We vs us]

Saw some yellow machinery knocking down the IndieParty.com infrastructure from a block or two away today. Not sure if that means larger construction on the lot is about to start . . . but I'm happy to see them clearing all that useless pop-up crapola away, finally. Long overdue, IMHO.

[Geckos_Rule]

Originally Posted by The ATX

Here's something that might give hope for those hating on parking podiums. It's an article about Gensler designing buildings for the future. From the article:



https://www.forbes.com/sites/alanohn.../#14ea91f97244

Gensler isn't designing this though.... and given the other Gensler designs I've seen i'm not sure this is being implemented in Austin quite yet--though maybe it's hard to tell without more detail or seeing in person.

Either way, this is a good idea. I've always liked how other large cities will put multiple levels of retail or restaurants in the densest areas. Of course those places are much more dense, but I love seeing 7 floors of shopping and restaurants on a small footprint in the base of an office building in Tokyo.