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(Leonid Furmansky)
Preservation Austin is getting “Out Of The House” with this year’s Annual Homes Tour.
Instead of guiding attendees through the halls of historical houses, this year Preservation Austin’s 30th annual tour will showcase sites around town from schools to churches to city buildings.
The event is Preservation Austin’s biggest fundraiser, going to support advocacy efforts in historic places. This will be the first in-person event held by the nonprofit since 2019.
Take a peek at the tour’s schedule.
Baker School | 3908 Avenue B
(Atelier Wong)
Built in 1911 in the historic Hyde Park neighborhood, the Baker School was first an elementary school, then a middle school, then a high school, then an administrative building for the city’s school district and now serves as the headquarters for Alamo Drafthouse Cinema.
Castle Court Offices | 1105 Castle Ct.
(Rob Gomez)
As part of the former Texas Military Institute, the Castle Court Offices were built out of rubble limestone in 1873 and are located just near the Castle nearby. Originally the kitchen and mess hall, it is now used for office space.
Holly Street Murals | 2298 Riverview St.
(Catalina Cherñavvsky Sequeira)
Located on the sound wall of the now-defunct Holly Street Power Plant, local artists Felipe Garza, Robert Herrera, Oscar Cortez and Fidencio Duran painted the murals in the 1990s to reclaim their neighborhood, which did not want the plant in the first place.
John & Drucie Chase Building | 1191 Navasota St.
(Anne Burnett)
Designed by the first Black graduate of UT’s School of Architecture and first licensed Black architect in Texas, John Saunders Chase, the 1,450-square-foot John & Drucie Chase Building was built in 1952 and served as the headquarters for the Colored Teachers Association of Texas. The building is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Moya House | 1102 E. Cesar Chavez St.
(Ashley Garmon)
The only true home on the list, the 1930’s-built Moya house was home to Richard Moya, a Chicano activist and the first Mexican American Austinite to achieve public office in the city in 1970. His bungalow is now an event space.
Travis County Probate Courthouse | 200 W. 8th St.
(Casey Dunn)
An Austin-centric example of the New Deal-era architecture, the Old Federal Courthouse was built in 1936. The courthouse has been successfully updated since it was purchased by Travis County in 2016 and is currently seeking LEED Gold certification.
Wesley United Methodist Church | 1164 San Bernard St.
(Leonid Furmansky)
The city’s oldest church congregation, which formed in 1865, stays at Wesley United Methodist Church, which relocated from downtown to East Austin in 1929. The site of worship is characterized by its stained glass windows, Gothic Revival architecture and interior beams.
Tickets are on sale through Friday, starting at $30 for members and $40 for nonmembers, and the tour will begin at the Baker School.
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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.
