Downtown Developments

The cranes are back, but you haven't seen nothin' yet. No doubt you've noticed several construction projects in the Sixth and Lamar area and other parts of downtown, but just wait until next year, and the next. Look for a real, live construction boom to take off in every pocket of downtown. Here's a list of ongoing projects, soon-to-break-ground projects, and still other public-private ventures working their way through the process. When all the dust has settled, we'll be looking at a whole new landscape.

Under Construction

These projects are already well under way, and most are nearing completion:

C1 524 N. Lamar
Where: Sixth & Lamar (SW corner)
What: Retail and office center with Austin tenants By George clothing store, Mecca, a gym and day spa; Houson-based Cities (sort of a mini Crate and Barrel); and office space.
Size: 38,000 sq. ft.
Who: Williams Ltd. (Evan Williams)
Opening Date: March 2000

C2 Sixth+Lamar (formerly Austin Marketplace)
Where: Sixth & Lamar (south of Fifth)
What: Phase 1 of project: Office Max, Starbucks, Earful of Books, Powerhouse Gyms, office space
Size: 90,000 sq. ft.
Who: Schlosser Development (Brad Schlosser, David Vitanza)
Opening Date: March 2000

R1 West Avenue Lofts
Where: 300 West Avenue
What: Residential development (on city-owned property)
Size: 243 apartments
Who: Post Properties (Kent Collins)
Opening Date: Spring 2000

V1 Blackwell-Thurman Criminal Justice Center
Where: Nueces, between 10th and 11th
What: 11-story building with criminal courts, holding cells, and new central booking facility.
Size: 232,000 sq. ft.
Who: Travis County
Opening Date: March 2000

V2 Texas History Museum
Where: Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. and 18th
What: Three-story permanent exhibit, IMAX theatre, temporary exhibit space
Size: 34,000 sq. ft.
Who: State of Texas
Opening Date: Spring 2001

V3 Austin Convention Center
Where: Fourth, between Trinity and Red River
What: Expansion south of the Convention Center
Size: 420,000 sq. ft
Who: City of Austin
Opening Date: Spring 2002

Soon to Break Ground

Several projects are slated to begin the construction process in early 2000:

C4 Computer Sciences Corp.
Where: Cesar Chavez, 2nd,Lavaca, Colorado
What: First of three blocks to be occupied by CSC on city-owned property. Details are still in the works on how ground-floor retail will function (see Shop Talk).
Size: 212,000 sq. ft.
Who: CSC
Next Step: Construction begins Feb. 1 on this lakefront block. CSC's second lakefront block, C5, between San Antonio and Guadalupe, gets under way in June, with the third and final block, C6, to start in 2001.

C3 Sixth+Lamar
Where: Lamar between Fifth and Sixth
What: Second phase of Schlosser Development's project will include a Target, a 16-screen theatre, and other specialty shops and restaurants are slated.
Size: 425,000 sq. ft.
Who: Schlosser Development
Next Step: Demolition starts in January-February, with construction to begin in late February.

C7 300 West Sixth
Where: 300 W. Sixth
What: Office building. Tenants leasing offices include the button-down crowd: the law firms of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, and Clark Thomas & Winters.
Size: 425,000 sq. ft.
Who: Carr America Realty
Next Step: Carr expects to secure site permit by end of January and begin preliminary work on the project in March, with construction to start in May.

R2 The Nokonah
Where: Ninth and Lamar
What: High-end owner-occupied condos
Size: 160,000 sq. ft., 85 condos
Who: New Urban Partners (Perry Lorenz, Robert Barnstone)
Next Step: Lorenz and Barnstone are shooting for a mid-February construction date.

R3 AMLI Residential
Where: 200 W. Second
What: 200 apartments
Size: 240,000 sq. ft.
Who: AMLI
Next Step: Construction begins in February.

On the Table

Other major city-related projects are still being hammered out.

C8 Hilton-Landmark Hotel
Where: Fourth, Fifth, Neches, Red River
What: 800-room hotel, with ground-floor retail
Size: 25,000 sq. ft.; 1,000 parking spaces
Who: Hilton Hotels and Landmark Organization Inc.
Next Step: Interest rates have jumped twice since the city agreed to work a deal with Hilton and Landmark to build a convention center hotel on Fourth -- at no expense to taxpayers. Nice idea, but the shift in the financial market has forced negotiations to drag on with still no agreement inked between the city and hotel reps. Assuming everything will get straightened out, the $200 million project would provide 800 rooms, some retail on the ground floor, and 1,000 parking spaces.

R4 AMLI Residential
Where: Second, Guadalupe, Third, San Antonio
What: Apartments, with retail on first floor
Size: 200 apartments, 240,000 sq. ft.
Who: AMLI, with city of Austin (Stuart Shaw of Bonner Carrington is the point man.)
Next Step: This project is on hold while the city, CSC, and AMLI finalize retail plans.

V4 Austin Museum of Art
Where: Third, Guadalupe, Fourth, San Antonio
What: Long-awaited art museum
Size: 120,000 sq. ft.
Who: Austin Museum of Art (Kate Roberts, spokeswoman)
Next Step: The city is wrapping up negotiations to purchase the state-owned land, just south of Republic Square.

V5 City Hall
Where: Cesar Chavez, Guadalupe, 2nd, Lavaca
What: Public Plaza and City Hall
Size: 100,000 sq. ft.
Who: City of Austin
Next Step: The project is scheduled to break ground in early 2000.