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Julio Cascante
Jersey number: No. 18
Hometown: Puerto Limon, Costa Rica
Position: Central defender
Age: 27
Former Club: Portland Timbers
Background
(Julio Cascante S./Twitter)
From Costa Rica to Portland, Oregon, defender Julio Cascante has played in rain, sleet and snow throughout his decade-long career.
After playing with the Portland Timbers, Cascante went Verde with a $250,000 deal on Dec. 13, 2020, the same day that the club finalized five other signees.
Packing on more experience than his age reveals, Cascante began his professional career in 2011 with Costa Rican first division (Primera Division) side Orion FC in 2011. Since then, he's spent time around the Primera Division, playing for the Costa Rican National Team and traveling north to the MLS.
Cascante transferred to Austin FC after a three-year stint with the Portland Timbers, where he made 48 total appearances, scored two goals and contributed to five shutouts. The central defender was also given the Champion of the MLS is Back Tournament title in 2020.
Before the Timbers, Cascante played for Costa Rican team Deportivo Saprissa and helped the team to its 31st Primera Division title in 2017 alongside fellow Austin FC teammate Ulises Segura. Cascante made 59 appearances with Saprissa in 2017-18, including five starts in the Concacaf Champions League. Before Saprissa, Cascant spent time with Primera Division team Club CF Universidad de Costa Rica from 2013-16 after his three-season debut with Orion FC.
On the international stage, Cascante has made one appearance on the Costa Rican National team against Nicaragua in 2015. Cascante first played alongside Segura in the Costa Rica U-22 team in the 2015 World Youth Festival, and he made three more national team appearances on the U-23 Costa Rica team for the 2015 Concacaf Olympic Qualifying Tournament.
With Austin FC
Vamos que vamos 💪🏾😤@AustinFCpic.twitter.com/EpE6GR79nl
— Julio Cascante S. (@JulCascante) March 13, 2021
An experienced center back, Cascante is looking to be a contender for the other central defender position alongside likely starter Matt Besler, although young Colombian Jhohan Romana could also be in the mix.
Cascante said that Head Coach Josh Wolff believes in the technical ability of center backs, a tactic that sets him apart from other coaches and makes the team a more cohesive unit.
"A lot of coaches want to not play with the center backs, but he had a really good idea to start from the back, things that make you believe in his idea, your team, and in yourself," Cascante said. "You don't face that many coaches that want to play like him."
Cascante said that the team's first season is going to be tough because everyone brings intensity and perfectionism onto the field.
"It's going to be tough because everyone gets frustrated sometimes, but it's because everyone wants to be perfect," Cascante said. "It's kind of hard because everyone comes from a different team with different ideas, but we're getting there."
At 6'1, Cascante is one of the taller players on the team, and the 27-year old is the eighth oldest Austin FC member.
Off the pitch
MOOD in Portland...
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) September 20, 2020
After scoring a club record 6⃣ goals! 🤗 pic.twitter.com/HvklDPUcol
Cascante and his wife, Jessica, have underwent more changes than packing up and moving to Austin: the Cascantes have a four-month old son as well. Just a few months before his baby was due, the defender celebrated his first-ever goal with a special victory celebration.
In a press conference, Cascante said that the move is tougher with a newborn but ultimately worth it.
The move to Austin has been a little bit rough with a new newborn baby," Cascante said. "But me and my wife, we're really, really happy to be here. The city, the supporters, have been really, really good to us."
A native of Puerto Limon, Costa Rica's seventh-largest city, Cascante said he values the intensity at Austin FC.
"As a Hispanic coming from Costa Rica, I think the intensity is always high level here," Cascante said. "I can get used to that."
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Popular
Historic preservationists, for their part, overwhelmingly support historic zoning, which would preserve the buildings in perpetuity. The Historic Landmark Commission unanimously voted to initiate historic zoning in July, citing architectural significance, landscape features and association to historic figures. City staffers recommend historic zoning, calling both structures one-of-a-kind examples of vernacular architecture.
Tarrytown neighbors have also banded together to stop the demolition. Many have written letters, and a few spoke at the meeting. “How could anyone buy this property with the intent of destroying it?” Ila Falvey said. “I think it’s an architectural treasure.”
Michael Whellan, an attorney representing the property owner, said that the claims made by preservationists are shaky. The buildings are run down, he said, and have had substantial renovations. A structural engineer hired by the owner said any attempt at preservation would involve tearing down and rebuilding – an undertaking Whellan said would likely cost millions.
Whellan also argued that any historical significance derived from the property’s association with Delisle and longtime owner C.H. Slator is dubious. “These men are not noted for any civic, philanthropic or historic impact,” he said.
What’s more, according to Whellan, Slator likely participated in segregation as the owner of the Tavern on North Lamar Boulevard between 1953 and 1960.
A city staffer, however, said she found no evidence to support the claim. “We would never landmark a property where a segregationist lived, or there was a racist person,” Kimberly Collins with the Historic Preservation Office said.
Commissioner Awais Azhar couldn’t support historic zoning in part due to lingering uncertainty about Slator. “Focusing on that factor is not here to disparage an individual or family. It is not about playing the race card. This is an important assertion for us to consider as Planning commissioners,” Azhar said.
Commissioner Carmen Llanes Pulido said that allegations of racism should come as no surprise. “We’re talking about white male property owners in the 1950s, in Austin, on the west side – and of course they were racist,” she said. But she argued that allowing the house to be demolished based on these grounds does nothing to help people of color who have been harmed by racism and segregation.
The question of tax breaks was also controversial. Michael Gaudini, representing the property owner, said that the tax breaks associated with historic zoning would exacerbate inequality by shifting property tax burdens to less affluent communities. City staffers estimate that the property, appraised at $3.5 million, would get either a $8,500 or $16,107 property tax break annually, depending on whether a homestead exemption is applied.
Commissioner Grayson Cox preferred the commission focus not on tax breaks but on whether the structures merit preservation. “To me, nothing in the historic preservation criteria lists, is this person deserving of a tax break or not?”
Azhar, on the other hand, said he plans to propose a code amendment getting rid of city property tax breaks for historic properties.
The commission fell one vote short of recommending historic zoning, with six commissioners in support and three opposed. Azhar and commissioners Claire Hempel and Greg Anderson voted against.
The odds of City Council zoning over an owner’s wishes are slim. Nine out of 11 members must vote in favor, and there have only been a handful of such cases over the past several decades.
