Architecture


Other Reasons Besides Barton Springs to Live in Austin

THE MOON TOWERS Sitting on the curb on West Lynn on a hot summer night: it may be late or it may be early, it's hard to tell in the warm glow of artificial moonlight. In the winter, the Zilker park tower becomes a Christmas tree, and over in Hyde Park there's a tower to guide bike riders home at night. But maybe best of all to the late-night adventurer is the moonlight tower downtown lighting the way to the car for those staggering out of La Zona Rosa or Liberty Lunch. The one you love looks just as good under a moonlight tower as in the real thing. (All around town.)

Best Annual Christmas Display

WEST 37TH STREET EAST OF GUADALUPE If the Zilker Park trail of taillights (and exhaust) reminds you too much of the worst rush hour traffic and feels just a bit too theatrical and commercial, the real spirit of Christmas can be found in the neighborhood-wide effort on West 37th Street that adorns the lane with lights, color and magic. As one house's display - some simple, some dazzlingly decorative - spills into another, it's hard not to feel the spirit of the season from the community effort that envelops the street.

Ugliest Building

SOMBRERO ROSA Tacky, tacky, tacky... and worse than that, the damn place closed within a few months of the construction of this obnoxious pink sombrero-topped monstrosity on the Drag. It's beyond kitsch. It's an eyesore whose ugliness just magnifies the glitzy commercialization of the University strip of Guadalupe. (1915 Guadalupe)

Best Mall to Hang Outside Of

ARBORETUM The graceful promenade behind the Arboretum Mall is a place of beauty and quietude (excepting their occasional free music shows) with tables and benches and an overlook with a lovely view. A perfect respite from the grind of shopping. (1000 Research Blvd.)

Best Bowling Alley Sign

DART BOWL Hey! Let's go bowling!. This nostalgic sign, north on Burnet, brings to mind deliciously flat, frozen bowling alley pizza, the smell of wax, cokes with ice and some great vintage league shirts. (7801 Burnet, 459-5414; Mon-Thu 8am-10:30pm, Fri-Sat 8am-1am, Sun 8am-9:30pm, closing times vary due to league play and weather)

Most Romantic Way To Spend Money

THE DRISKILL HOTEL AND THE FOUR SEASONS Hotels like these two are lots of fun. They are great places to have affairs, celebrate anniversaries and occasionally star gaze. They are especially fun to check into for the weekend (always ask about weekend packages) and have the front desk hold all calls. Hungry? Order room service. Require entertainment? Watch in-room movies. Traditional lovers will enjoy the genteel elegance of the Driskill, contemporary romantics will appreciate the ultra-modern Four Seasons. (Driskill, 604 Brazos 474-5911; Four Seasons, 98 San Jacinto 478-4500)

Best Yard Art

IRA POOLE'S YARD Chances are Ira Poole has probably had more people stop at his home wondering if he was selling cemetery memorials rather than asking for a tour of his mini-lawn museum. It's just too unbelievable that some guy would have: a 900 lb. concrete sphinx sitting on a raised slab of Texas, a replica of the Statue of Liberty, a fountain, a 3-dimensional granite map of the U.S. and Mexico, and another smaller map of Texas with a yellow rose bush growing, yes, in the "heart" of it. Stop and ask him for a tour. Or just drive by on your way to the airport as the final attraction for your houseguests. (2400 E. Martin Luther King Blvd.)

Best Work In Progress

CINDERBLOCK STRUCTURE AT 44TH ST. & AVE. G Going up or coming down? For nearly a decade, the cinderblock bunker at the corner of 44th & G has puzzled passersby. Posted with No Trespassing signs, its half-finished walls surround an Airstream trailer and a surprisingly graceful arched facade (no roof, of course, but who are we to quibble?). Turns out it's the brainchild of Eugene George, a senior lecturer in UT's architectural engineering department, who plans to inhabit the thing if it's ever finished. Taj Mahal or neighborhood eyesore? We'll wait `til the stucco's on for a final judgment.

Best Mini-Mall/ Shopping Center

LAMAR PLAZA In this age of generic shopping malls overrun by glitzy national chain merchandisers, it's refreshing to come upon a collection of homegrown businesses that appear to be congruent with the progressive-minded inhabitants of the neighborhood. This well-worn shopping area in near South Austin sits at the corner of S. Lamar and Treadwell, anchored on the northeast by Trudy's and on the southwest by the ever-funky Foodland "supermarket." Its more well-known landmarks include Ray Hennig's Heart of Texas Music store, with its wall of guitars, Big Steve's Gym and Aerobic Center, and the Salvation Army Thrift Store. But did you know that Lamar Plaza is also the home of the Crystal Connection, a "cosmic coffeehouse, transcendental tearoom" and New Age bookstore? Keith Ayers' Texas Beat magazine and Glitch Records are neatly tucked away along with newcomers like Let's Dish (a vintage clothing and knickknack store), Suzi's Chinese Kitchen, and a loud green Thundercloud Subs drive-thru that once housed a Photo-Mat. Particularly noteworthy are the social service agencies located there which serve the community at large: Planned Parenthood, Al-Anon/Alateen, and a branch of the Austin Stress Clinic which runs prevention/treatment programs for child abuse and domestic violence. A little something for everyone... no place but South Austin.

Best Place to Get Lost

PERRY-CASTAñEDA LIBRARY, UT Certainly a bibliophile or trivia hound could spend hours here thumbing through obscure academic journals or finding out which best sellers are on the shelves. But before you get lost in the pages, you might get lost in the building itself. Not that there's anything wrong with the shape of our fair state - it's just that it contains highways, hills, and prairies far more efficiently mapped than the miles of rectangular bookshelves scattered across the Library of Congress numerical system. (21st & Speedway, 495-4250; Mon-Fri 8am-midnight, Sat 9am-midnight, Sun noon-midnight)

Best Echo

ONE CAPITOL SQUARE One Capitol Square, also called the William P. Clements State Office Building (gee, what a grand name!) at 15th and Lavaca is a must-see. If you haven't been, you gotta hear this place. It's the best echo this side of the Taj Mahal. Of course, we've never been to India, but the echo here is pretty damn great.

Best Parking Garage

STOKES BUILDING If you enjoy skating parking garages, this one is the best we know of in town. You get the excitement of the smooth, fast turns, as well as the thrill of knowing skateboards are not allowed - and the County Sheriff's Department parks its cars on the ground level! (Guadalupe at 11th)

Best Fountain to Swim In/ Best Place to Cast a Shadow

LBJ LIBRARY-UT After rolling down the giant hill by the main fountain, it's great to run up the north steps and jump into one of the three shallow fountains on the upper level to cool off. When you've sufficiently chilled, you can cast shadows with your body on the giant sandstone wall of the tall building facing west of the fountains. Though you can cast a shadow at any time of the night, it's best just at sundown on the west wall, when shadows grow up to 20 feet in height. A great place to take your date (if you don't mind the possibility of getting arrested).

Best Cursed Location

SITE OF FORMER ALAMO HOTEL The Alamo was a low-cost high rise hotel in downtown Austin. It housed many homeless and low-income people. When Lamar Savings & Loan president Stanley Adams ordered the Alamo torn down in 1984 to make way for a new Lamar headquarters, Brother Tony Hearn, a homeless advocate, poured animal blood around the building and pronounced a curse of unprofitability. He rescinded it in 1986; nonetheless, since then, Lamar has failed and been taken over by the federal government, and Adams has been convicted of S&L crimes and is facing prison. Grass is growing high on the still-vacant tract. (Northwest corner, 6th & Guadalupe)

Best Hole in the Ground

THE NORTH CAPITOL EXTENSION How low can the legislature go? Four floors down, at least, in the new subterranean extension just north of the Capitol. Already skadillions over budget, the hole was begun on the watch of Capitol architect Allen McCree (whose contract has not been renewed but no one's talking). Will there still be enough $$ left over to repair the creaky Capitol itself? We dunno, but at least Gov. Ann nixed the $400 ashtrays.

Best Place to Get Married (Out of Town)

ST. LUKE'S ON THE LAKE A certain Chronicle senior editor swears that if he ever marries (again), this is where he'll do it (even though it was his ex-wife who first pointed out St. Luke's to him as an ideal spot to tie the knot). In the main part of this Episcopal church, the altar is framed by a magnificent view of Lake Travis and the surrounding hills through the giant windows behind it, while a smaller outdoor chapel is ideal for more intimate ceremonies. For picturesque nuptials, this is it. (266-2455, 5600 Ranch Rd. 620 N.)
UPDATE (9/96): Seems St. Luke's gets more action in the wedding department than they'd like -- curious couples are routinely flooding their phones with requests. While their breathtaking view earns many glances, it seems St. Luke's wants more of an, um, commitment. They've recently asked us to note that use of their facilities are restricted to those who (a) belong to the church, or (b) agree to join the church, "after completing premarital counseling." Thoughts to consider before heading for the altar, indeed.

Best Place To Get Married (In Town)

CASWELL HOUSE It is elegantly historical, eminently affordable, remarkably beautiful and has a great view. It's photogenic, spacious and is as perfect for weddings as for receptions. We can certainly recommend it more legally than the Capitol Dome, where Margaret Moser and Rollo Banks (without official permission) walked up with their minister and friends, stood on the star and got married. (1404 West Ave., 472-0779)

Best Graveyard

OAKWOOD If you're looking for the biggest, most gothic graveyard in town, Oakwood wins by far. With graves dating back to the early 1800s, the yard also features the newest in modern gravestones, though the newer section across the street on the East side is not nearly as interesting. During the day, the graveyard is peaceful and shaded - covered with giants oaks and a variety of ivy and flowering bushes. You can make beautiful cards and posters by doing charcoal or colored pencil rubbings off the more ornate headstones. At night, the graveyard is pretty spooky -- but in a fun way. No one disturbs you there, so if you want to be alone, this is definitely the place to go. (Comal at East Martin Luther King Blvd.)

Best Traffic Light

BURNET ROAD AT BRAKER LANE The general consensus at the Traffic Signal Division of the Austin Public Works Department is that the signal ensemble at Burnet Road and Braker Lane is Austin's best. It seems the high-tech signals there are timed to permit free flow of traffic through a series of intersections and are equipped with left-turn lane sensors so you don't have to wait forever for a green arrow to appear. Ain't technology wonderful?

Worst Intersection

30TH STREET AT SPEEDWAY AND SAN JACINTO During the day, swarms of students walk, bike, bus, and skateboard across this intersection. With five corners from which students can cross, and a plethora of ways they could jay-walk, drivers need to be extra careful for the 9am class students at 9:05. At night, the situation is different - The Crown & Anchor rests comfortably on the corner, giving the evening driver a multitude of drunk student targets. In the summer, the auto traffic is rarely notable, but during the larger part of the year, cars back up on all five corners waiting for someone else to chance the crossing first. Who needs stoplights?

Copyright © 1992 Austin Chronicle Corp. All rights reserved.