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-   -   AUSTIN | Southeast Austin/Riverside Corridor Updates (https://skyscraperpage.com/forum/showthread.php?t=172955)

KevinFromTexas Aug 27, 2009 5:50 AM

AUSTIN | Southeast Austin/Riverside Corridor Updates
 
http://www.statesman.com/business/co...826grayco.html

Quote:

GRAYCO EAST RIVERSIDE PROJECTS

Fight brewing over East Riverside development
Critics angry over height of planned buildings.

By Shonda Novak, Marty Toohey

AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Opponents have mobilized for a fight Thursday at City Hall against an upscale apartment project that would be one of the biggest new developments along East Riverside Drive. The $200 million project, by Houston-based Grayco Partners, would include 1,200 apartments and 97,000 square feet of street-level retail space on about 30 acres bounded by Riverside, South Lakeshore Boulevard and Tinnin Ford Road.

The tallest of the six buildings could be up to 90 feet high, though the current design envisions a maximum of about 75 feet.

The vote Thursday would be the first big development decision by a City Council with two new members, and the first since the city reinstated 1986 rules that limit building heights along the lake.

The Grayco site is separated from the lake by Lakeshore and a city park. It is 390 feet from the shore at its closest point, and 650 at its farthest, said Grayco's attorney, Steve Drenner.

KevinFromTexas Aug 27, 2009 5:53 AM

http://www.statesman.com/opinion/con...ncil_edit.html

Quote:

EDITORIAL: DEVELOPMENT

City of Austin wins with Riverside project

EDITORIAL BOARD


Thursday, August 27, 2009

The Austin City Council has an opportunity to create a first-class waterfront district that fits with the values and character of Austin. It could take a big step in that direction today by approving a $200 million project by Grayco Partners that would be built along East Riverside Drive.

The project meets all 28 requirements for the zoning change it is seeking as a planned unit development, which allows for a mixture of uses. The requirements include: limiting impervious cover to existing level, providing for increased waterfront overlay setback, providing 20 percent open space for mixed use, and treating and improving the quality of on-site storm water.

Grayco wants to include some buildings along the northern edge of the project that are 30 feet higher than the 60-foot limit permitted by the city's waterfront overlay ordinance. But height limits can and, in this case, should be modified. To obtain that change, a project must provide superior community benefits. This project does that and more.

chancla Aug 27, 2009 10:42 AM

I'm glad that the paper got behind this. It's about time that people stood up for density and stood up to those NIMBY save townlake people.

Seriously, this project is going to be a football field away from town lake. Height shouldn't even be an issue.

ATXboom Aug 27, 2009 1:02 PM

I find it funny that the people who actually live in that neighborhood WANT that development... meanwhile the same minority group of 20 from a different neighborhood are trying to stop it.

It appears as if the neighborhood engaged in some type of study that got the input of the entire community... not just community leadership. The majority is speaking here!

My take away is that perhaps the city should fund more comprehensive neighborhood studies to gather the collective voice... not just the voice of a few that hang out at city hall all day long.

Scottolini Aug 27, 2009 8:51 PM

This says it all, "The project meets all 28 requirements for the zoning change it is seeking". Seems like a no-brainer.

MichaelB Aug 27, 2009 11:16 PM

I am also happy to see the Statesman back this. I can wait to see who voted how! Gee, wonder how Ms Laura will vote?

JAM Aug 28, 2009 1:31 AM

390 feet from lake seems plenty far back. I don't know why anyone would get upset over this, seems like a good thing.

This orgainization has made it easy to contact your city reps: (of course they are against it, they seem to be against anything, starting to get hard to take them seriously, not sure what is real or not real with these guys sometimes)

http://www.savetownlake.org/ContactReps.html

KevinFromTexas Aug 28, 2009 2:06 AM

Most of the the trees, Cypress especially, that line the river are 85 to 100 feet tall. The tallest buildings here will probably be 90 feet, though the article mentioned something about one being 120 feet. The taller buildings would be set farthest from the river, 650 feet away infact. You'd be lucky to be able to see them at all from Riverside Drive, let alone from the river (since the elevation is lower) and from the other side.

To put this project into perspective, the CSC/Silicon Labs buildings flanking the city hall downtown, are each around 100 feet tall, and City Hall is 67 feet tall. Even at 120 feet tall, that is such a modest height, even for that area.

Just look at that new office building on West 5th Street. The Capstar at Compass Plaza. It's 100 feet tall and it's hardly noticeable along the river and anywhere around downtown.

I think one thing that drives these anti-development arguments is most people have no idea what a 100 foot building looks like. They hear that number 100 and freak out and think it's a mountain. Of course there are probably a couple hundred 100 foot tall buildings all over Austin.

JAM Aug 28, 2009 3:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KevinFromTexas (Post 4428271)
I think one thing that drives these anti-development arguments is most people have no idea what a 100 foot building looks like. They hear that number 100 and freak out and think it's a mountain. Of course there are probably a couple hundred 100 foot tall buildings all over Austin.

Kevin - that is an excellent point, never thought about that but there is probably a lot of truth to that. This would be an excellent question to bring up when speaking with someone against height.

When Spring was going thru the approval process, people were standing on the pedestrian bridge petitioning against it, saying it would create a canyon effect on the lake. I was really taken back by their statements at the time, and now that it is finished, it is simply just funny. Spring seems so far from the lake that it doesn't even matter, yet these people were pationate about the canyon effect it was going to create.

NThomas Aug 29, 2009 5:41 AM

So how did the vote go?

MichaelB Aug 29, 2009 6:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NThomas (Post 4430461)
So how did the vote go?

Postponed. Both sides requested a postponement. It was granted. All parties promised no more postponements. (we'll see) Didn't get when it was rescheduled for.

H2O Aug 29, 2009 3:10 PM

9/24
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by MichaelB (Post 4430486)
Postponed. Both sides requested a postponement. It was granted. All parties promised no more postponements. (we'll see) Didn't get when it was rescheduled for.

Postponed to September 24, 2009.

KevinFromTexas Sep 24, 2009 6:39 AM

^So today (Thursday) would be the day.

Quote:

Upscale Riverside development a test case for lakeside high-rises

Houston developer offers to pony up for affordable housing - but is it enough?

By Marty Toohey

AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF

Thursday, September 24, 2009

As part of a special zoning agreement, a developer who wants to build an upscale East Riverside Drive apartment complex has offered almost $4 million for low-income housing in Austin. But as the City Council prepares for a possible vote today on the plan, a last-minute question has emerged: Is $4 million enough?

...

http://www.statesman.com/business/co...924grayco.html

KevinFromTexas Sep 25, 2009 6:22 AM

Quote:

AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL
Upscale development on Riverside takes step toward council approval
5-2 vote is first of 3 approvals required for project to go forward.

By Marty Toohey

AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF

Friday, September 25, 2009

The Austin City Council gave preliminary approval Thursday to a proposed development on East Riverside Drive. The 5-2 vote was the first of three approvals required for the project to go forward.

Grayco Partners, a Houston-based developer, wants to build four towers, three up to 90 feet high, on 30 acres at Riverside and South Lakeshore Boulevard, about 300 feet from Lady Bird Lake. The buildings would house up to 1,200 apartment units.

As part of the vote, the council required Grayco to return with a list of options for how it could provide affordable housing to offset the loss of 600 relatively low-rent apartments that would be demolished.

Grayco has offered $3.2 million for that purpose. The city's legal department concluded this week that the developer would need to contribute $7.8 million for low-income housing, according to guidelines the council passed this year.

Read more

JAM Sep 26, 2009 6:23 PM

This is a great step forward in making this area much nicer for all Austinites.

Just finished sending a personal thank you note for getting this approved to each council person including Leffingwell and Morrison. Here's an easy way to thank them all.

http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/council/groupemail.htm

BTW - If you have not ever been down to this area of town, it's worth the trip to check it out. See for yourself what 90 feet will do. IMO It is irreleavant to the lake. There is ample park space in the area. It council really wants to do something about preserving the area, then they should just tear down the apartments and turn the area in to park land and eliminate S. Lakeshore Blvd.

Jdawgboy Sep 26, 2009 6:55 PM

Okay I did my part and placed a thank you letter to the council.

Myomi Sep 27, 2009 2:08 PM

I think another reason this project might be looked at disdainfully by some is the tone and language used by the media to describe the project. If you look through all the articles (and also listen to some of the TV news reports), politically charged words like high-rise and tower keep being used to describe these projects. Tower? Really? By the definition stated by these forums, high-rise has to be at least 200 feet. These "towers" are half that. They would be mid-rise at best, very similar to what has gone up in West Campus recently. I don't know if these words are being thrown around on purpose, but I can see how people, set in their ways and unwilling to research what's happening on their own, could picture a tower being built next to town lake with these projects being described this way. Granted, I wouldn't even mind if these buildings were towers, but come on, Greyco needs to do a better PR job and at least get the newspapers to correct their language on these projects. I certainly hope everything works out, because everything I have seen and heard about this project makes it seem like a major step in the right direction for that area.

KevinFromTexas Sep 28, 2009 5:57 AM

Yeah, I pointed that out on the comments page. Tower? Really? 120 feet is a decent height in some places, but it's hardly a tower.

By the way, Emporis' definition of a high rise is a building that is at least 115 feet tall, or one that has at least 12 floors. I kind of think it's a dumb cutoff point. Also, the Austin Fire Department, along with most other cities classify buildings that are at least 75 feet tall to be a highrise. That's even more ridiculous though. I remember the articles a while back (a few years) about sprinkler systems being retrofitted into some of the older dorm buildings around UT. The policy said any building at or above 75 feet (a highrise) had to have sprinklers and other fire safety devices. Believe it or not, some of the older dorm buildings didn't have them, or hadn't been updated in years.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Myomi
Greyco needs to do a better PR job

I'm always sticking up for the correct terms and information on the subject in Statesman articles or anytime a new project comes along. Even if it's not a highrise or skyscraper project, I try to point out what exactly a 100 foot building looks like or one that is 200 feet or just 50 feet. They should put me on the payroll. LOL Seriously, you'd be surprised how many people are oblivious to building heights, and beyond just the normal general public's ignorance of the subject. I would expect the general public wouldn't know how tall most buildings are or know where to find that info, but for these anti-development folks who are raising their voice and opposing these developments, they should know better. If they claim they know what they're talking about and say they're involved and paying attention to the subject, then they should have better information and arguments than they usually bring up. I'm not even trying to change their mind or convince them that skyscrapers are a good idea, just hoping that they and others make informed decisions and opinions on the subject.

KevinFromTexas Dec 17, 2009 11:23 AM

Quote:

Lakeside apartments heading for final vote
Grayco proposal likely to be approved after affordable housing deal reached.

By Marty Toohey

AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF

Published: 11:36 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2009

A proposal for an upscale Southeast Austin apartment complex is coming back to the Austin City Council today for what looks like a final vote after the city and developer spent months negotiating a deal that has tested the city's vision for urban growth.

...
http://www.statesman.com/news/texas/...te-126283.html

KevinFromTexas Jun 14, 2012 7:43 PM

I thought this was under construction already, I guess not. I was asking for the building heights. Apparently it's gone through some design changes, too.

Quote:

Good afternoon Mr. Lehnhardt,

Thank you for your interest in our Austin project. We have not finalized plans on South Shore District and cannot give much information at this time.
Our initial plans have been revised completely. We should be able to give you more information towards the end of the year.

KevinFromTexas Jun 14, 2012 7:49 PM

Some links with renderings and information about the project. This probably isn't current, but I hadn't seen this stuff before. One rendering shows a 12 to 13-story building.

http://www.landpmarketing.com/case-s...shore-district

https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q...jhg9d_UhnH7QPQ

http://firstaustinproperties.com/wp-...hore-Flyer.pdf

http://chelrealty.com/austin-south-s...istrict/images

KevinFromTexas Jun 14, 2012 7:57 PM

http://www.statesman.com/business/re...n-2132079.html
Quote:

Hidden Neighborhood: South Shore District becoming more known, especially for renters

By Michele Chan Santos

SPECIAL TO THE AMERICAN-STATESMAN
Published: 9:26 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 28, 2012

The South Shore District is a rapidly transforming neighborhood in Southeast Austin where new construction and a proximity to downtown are bringing in new retail stores, restaurants, apartment residents and home buyers.

Located east of Interstate 35, the South Shore District reaches from Riverside Drive and South Lakeshore Boulevard on its north edge to East Oltorf Street on its south edge. Interstate 35 is its western border and South Pleasant Valley Road is its eastern border.

The largest development in South Shore District belongs to Houston-based Grayco Partners. Grayco is building an upscale $200 million apartment and retail project along East Riverside Drive. The development covers about 30 acres; proposals call for 1,200 apartments and more than 97,000 square feet of retail space.

nixcity Jun 15, 2012 5:15 PM

I love the idea of a pedestrian bridge there, it is such a long stretch of land from 35 to pleasant valley, that would be a great option. Also, if we don't get a few buildings of at least 8 stories i will pissed.

KevinFromTexas May 4, 2018 12:05 AM

Site plan with elevations for South Shore IV - 90 feet with 7 floors - 2000 South Lakeshore Boulevard.

ftp://ftp.ci.austin.tx.us/ATD_AULCC/...IV_PLAN_01.pdf

mumu May 4, 2018 1:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KevinFromTexas (Post 8176290)
Site plan with elevations for South Shore IV - 90 feet with 7 floors - 2000 South Lakeshore Boulevard.

ftp://ftp.ci.austin.tx.us/ATD_AULCC/...IV_PLAN_01.pdf

This site has over a dozen huge trees on it that would typically need to be transplanted. What are they going to do?

Jdawgboy May 5, 2018 7:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mumu (Post 8176359)
This site has over a dozen huge trees on it that would typically need to be transplanted. What are they going to do?

Hopefully they build around them.

KevinFromTexas May 24, 2018 6:51 PM

Site plan for Willow Hill Hotel - 59 feet - 4 floors. This is at East Riverside and South Pleasant Valley.


ftp://ftp.ci.austin.tx.us/ATD_AULCC/...an_PLAN_01.pdf

Max Tower May 24, 2018 8:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KevinFromTexas (Post 8198511)
Site plan for Willow Hill Hotel - 59 feet - 4 floors. This is at East Riverside and South Pleasant Valley.


ftp://ftp.ci.austin.tx.us/ATD_AULCC/...an_PLAN_01.pdf

This project's part of a boutique hotel chain called Roadhouse Hotel and Junction, with several locations planned in Southern California.

Michael Hsu is doing the design for the 128-room Austin location. You can see the similarities in design between this rendering for the Los Angeles location:

https://i.imgur.com/HIBdGka.jpg

And the elevations for the Austin location:

https://i.imgur.com/xacluqm.png

KevinFromTexas Aug 31, 2018 5:34 PM

Site plan for 6400 East Riverside Drive. Elevations are on page 53.

ftp://ftp.ci.austin.tx.us/ATD_AULCC/...se_PLAN_01.pdf

gabetx Aug 31, 2018 8:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KevinFromTexas (Post 8300233)
Site plan for 6400 East Riverside Drive. Elevations are on page 53.

ftp://ftp.ci.austin.tx.us/ATD_AULCC/...se_PLAN_01.pdf

So is this all residential? Rumor was that there was going to be an Alamo Drafthouse with this.

The ATX Aug 31, 2018 11:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gabetx (Post 8300426)
So is this all residential? Rumor was that there was going to be an Alamo Drafthouse with this.

The drawings in Kevin's link show a 39K sq. ft. theater.

mumu Sep 30, 2018 4:57 PM

Survey flags are now all around 1301-1401 Tinnin *Ford Road. I think Oracle acquired this site, although I'm not 100% sure. It's on the other side of the street of the DQ and then south.

https://preview.ibb.co/cLWxrz/tinninfordsurvey.jpg

smith_atx Nov 2, 2018 5:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Max Tower (Post 8198688)
This project's part of a boutique hotel chain called Roadhouse Hotel and Junction, with several locations planned in Southern California.

Michael Hsu is doing the design for the 128-room Austin location. You can see the similarities in design between this rendering for the Los Angeles location:

https://i.imgur.com/HIBdGka.jpg

And the elevations for the Austin location:

https://i.imgur.com/xacluqm.png

If this is the one going by O'Reilly Auto, they're turning dirt now.

urbancore Nov 2, 2018 6:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mumu (Post 8330822)
Survey flags are now all around 1301-1401 Tinnin *Ford Road. I think Oracle acquired this site, although I'm not 100% sure. It's on the other side of the street of the DQ and then south.

https://preview.ibb.co/cLWxrz/tinninfordsurvey.jpg

rumor is that Oracle is trying to purchase the condos across the street as well.

mumu Nov 2, 2018 9:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dcbrickley (Post 8366386)
rumor is that Oracle is trying to purchase the condos across the street as well.

I heard this too. Supposedly ~$800k a unit. All rumor.
"Across the street" means the ones on the next block down toward the lake on Tinnin Ford, on the east side of the street. That was an apartment (circa 1968?) to condo conversion about a decade ago.

smt1 Nov 22, 2018 2:13 PM

Looks like some of the buildings near the Catalyst redevelopment are going to have phones to prices in Central East Austin getting much more expensive:
https://glasstire.com/2018/06/23/pum...ady-bird-lake/

wwmiv Nov 23, 2018 10:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by smt1 (Post 8387382)
Looks like some of the buildings near the Catalyst redevelopment are going to have phones to prices in Central East Austin getting much more expensive:
https://glasstire.com/2018/06/23/pum...ady-bird-lake/

What you typed makes zero sense.

Jdawgboy Nov 23, 2018 6:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wwmiv (Post 8388151)
What you typed makes zero sense.

I know right lol?

I read that four times trying to figure it out. Phones to prices?? So they will cost in phones rather than money? Better save up all the old used phones then.:whistle:

the Genral Nov 24, 2018 1:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by smt1 (Post 8387382)
Looks like some of the buildings near the Catalyst redevelopment are going to have phones to prices in Central East Austin getting much more expensive:
https://glasstire.com/2018/06/23/pum...ady-bird-lake/

smt1, please clarify.

mumu Dec 17, 2018 8:05 PM

South Shore IV - 90 feet with 7 floors - 2000 South Lakeshore Boulevard

Is now well underway.

https://i.ibb.co/FYnygpY/ss.jpg


and


https://i.ibb.co/jM1YzQp/ss1.jpg

mumu Jan 22, 2019 4:19 AM

10-12 story towers to replace Mesh apartment complexes, very close to Oracle.

Austin’s premier woman developer seeks zoning amendments for projects near Oracle

The ATX Jan 22, 2019 6:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mumu (Post 8444805)
10-12 story towers to replace Mesh apartment complexes, very close to Oracle.

Austin’s premier woman developer seeks zoning amendments for projects near Oracle

Yup. The Planning Commission hears the zoning change request for 120' buildings Tuesday evening. Staff recommends approval, and there should be zero to minimal opposition.

The ATX Jan 28, 2019 6:53 AM

The PC passed the height increase to allow for the 10-12 story residential buildings near the Oracle Campus.

austlar1 Jan 28, 2019 7:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by The ATX (Post 8451720)
The PC passed the height increase to allow for the 10-12 story residential buildings near the Oracle Campus.

Excellent news!

Jdawgboy Jan 29, 2019 3:49 AM

Hopefully this is just the first step in height density. Would like to see 15-20+ story towers all along Riverside. I envision a sort of Wilshire Blvd. effect with highrises stretching from DT southeast towards the airport.

The ATX Jan 29, 2019 4:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jdawgboy (Post 8452967)
Hopefully this is just the first step in height density. Would like to see 15-20+ story towers all along Riverside. I envision a sort of Wilshire Blvd. effect with highrises stretching from DT southeast towards the airport.

I think we're heading that way. But only with baby steps. It's been a long time since city leaders did a significant upzoning of a large area. WC and Rainey was what, 12 years ago? The NW section of downtown isn't even CBD for the most part. That should definitely be the first area to get upzoned.

the Genral Jan 29, 2019 5:22 AM

Would that then be considered our '3rd' downtown? Seeing high-rises clustered just to the southeast as well as to the distant north (Domain) would make Austin look so much bigger. Around 30 years ago, the only tallish buildings were pretty much along and next to Congress Avenue. Then the next biggest deal was around the Arboretum. One of those towers was featured in the movie 'Office Space'.
My only concern about opening up Riverside to new heights...as downtown runs out of space leaving going taller the only option in the near future, will more abundant parcels on Riverside provoke developers into choosing to build cheaper mid-rises there than really expensive high-rises downtown while still remaining relatively close to downtown?

AusTxDevelopment Jan 29, 2019 3:46 PM

I'd like to see more height in the 'burbs. However Riverside is very close to ABIA. There are likely some height restrictions. Nothing that would stop most mid to high-rises but there won't be any Austonians or Independents on Riverside. A nice mix of low, mid and high-rises would be perfect.

Jdawgboy Jan 29, 2019 4:02 PM

I think the next area in the city that will go virtical is the St. Elmo District which will likely stretch from just east of S. 1st and St. Elmo to I-35 probably over the next 20 years as all of that old light industrial space is phased out. St. Elmo Market and the surrounding midrises are only the beginning. Eventually we will see more and more redevelopment and I'm confident that in time that development will increase in height especially if we can get a rail line down Congress Avenue.

KevinFromTexas Jan 29, 2019 4:41 PM

Someone I remember posted a very useful map of the approach map (I doubt that's the technical name for it) of ABIA showing the FAA height restrictions surrounding the airport. If someone remembers what I'm talking about, I'll add it to our list of helpful links here:

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=230371

On St. Elmo, I agree. I've always assumed that area would upzone/rezone eventually. The whole area around Ben White. All that industrial stuff. If you drive down South Congress now, it's looking sad with some vacant lots where they've already bulldozed some stuff for development, but that area could really come alive eventually.

I'm less optimistic that South First could ever be as urban as Congress and Lamar are. It's a much narrower street lacking a turn lane and there are no bike lanes, plus, it's much hillier. I used to huff and puff up those hills on my bike on the way to downtown before I finally came to my senses and took to the bike lanes on Congress. Even so, I avoid Congress these days because southern portion of South Congress is kind of hairy, and dark at night. So, I take Vinson and then dart over to Congress via either St. Elmo or Radam.


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