Notice cranes in the Austin skyline or fenced-off city blocks with deep holes in the ground? The constant construction is building the Austin of tomorrow, including five major mixed-use developments that span the South shore of Lady Bird Lake to the northeast tech corridor and are due to be completed over the next two decades.
EastVillage
This $1 billion, 425-acre mixed-use development will be located on Parmer Lane, across from the Samsung Austin Semiconductor plant and in the heart of the northeast tech corridor. Developer Reger Holdings refers to the area as Austin’s Upper East Side.
The first phase of the project, which includes a 312-unit apartment complex, recently broke ground and is due to be completed next spring. By 2028, when the development is expected to be completed, it will feature 2,000 multifamily units, 466 single-family homes, three hotels, 319,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space, 810,000 square feet of office space and 150 acres of wooded preserve.
Capitol Complex
The Texas Capitol Complex master plan is a state effort that aims to centralize state agencies and construct a pedestrian mall along Congress Avenue between 16th Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.
The $895 million project is due to be completed in three phases, according to the Texas Facilities Commission. The first phase includes the construction of two new state office buildings, the pedestrian mall and a two-story water utility plant, which are due to be completed between July and next May. The second phase is expected to be finished in 2025. There is also the possibility of a third phase, although funding and a timeframe have not yet been established.
Innovation District
The city’s burgeoning health innovation district—a nexus of academic, business and public tenants focused on new health policies, systems and products—includes Dell Medical School, Dell Seton Medical Center and the redeveloped HealthSouth property.
Austin City Council recently entered into preliminary negotiations with Aspen Heights Partners regarding HealthSouth and its parking garage, on Red River Street, which could serve as the district’s catalyst project. As proposed, it would include multi-bedroom affordable housing and affordable on-site childcare, live music and art venue space and publicly accessible open spaces.
Over the next decade, the district could create nearly 3,000 jobs, increase land value and property tax revenue, and generate $800 million in economic output, according to an analysis commissioned by the Downtown Austin Alliance.
South Central Waterfront
Austin City Council adopted the South Central Waterfront Framework Plan in 2016, which will guide the redevelopment of 118 acres along Lady Bird Lake over the next 20 years. The area is made up of 32 private parcels, including the Austin American-Statesman property.
The $252 million plan charts out a network of connected green streets, public open spaces and a goal of 530 new affordable housing units. As proposed, the Statesman site will be redeveloped to include several buildings, some as high as 40 stories; an extension of Barton Springs Road from South Congress Avenue to East Riverside Drive; and 12.5 acres of public space, including a waterfront park.
The Austin Economic Development Corporation, which is helping to manage the plan, intends to create a tax increment reinvestment zone, or TIRZ, to help finance the project, which would require approval from Austin City Council. A TIRZ uses future tax revenue to finance new development.
River Park
This 97-acre mixed use development is slated for the intersection of Riverside Drive and South Pleasant Valley Road and will include more than 400 affordable housing units as well as 10 million square feet of offices, shops, hotels, parks and homes. It is scheduled to be built in phases over the next two decades, with a preliminary start date planned for 2023.
Bordered by Guerrero Park and Country Club Creek, the development will include access to the Ann and Roy Butler Hike and Bike Trail and more than 30 acres of public parkland and urban trails. It will also be served by a forthcoming light rail line planned under Project Connect.