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After the announcement that protests in opposition of the 2020 election results are scheduled in all 50 states leading up to the Jan. 20 presidential inauguration, some Austin businesses have boarded up their windows. Most, however, have decided not to bring out the plywood.
<p>Although most businesses have elected to leave their windows uncovered so far, 7-Eleven, Total Men's Primary Care, and the post office downtown have all boarded up in the wake of Wednesday's insurgence and protests to come as Inauguration Day approaches. Additional boarded-up businesses like Cuba512 have remained covered in plywood since the summer.</p>
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<p>When protesting began in the wake of George Floyd's murder, a few Austin businesses experienced various degrees of property damage, prompting many to cover their windows in a bid to protect themselves and their establishments. <a href="https://austonia.com/boarded-up-downtown" target="_blank">The plywood returned to downtown</a> during election week in November, although there was no damage from protests. </p>
<p>Earl Joyner, a security guard downtown, says the businesses which currently have their windows covered are simply taking precaution. While some businesses suffered damage, he said the businesses he patrols remained untouched this past summer.</p>
<p>"You just never know what's gonna happen, though," Joyner said.</p>
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<img class="rm-shortcode" data-height="3679" data-rm-shortcode-id="38bd66fb91322d9366c09f1b7b715f7f" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNTQ0OTI5MS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYzMDAxNDI4NX0.Mpu7FaoxitvvxL3TPyL9nVOnNW7Tce9SrGZG9suBL7Q/img.jpg?width=980" data-width="5519" id="df7b7" type="lazy-image"/>
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<p>Businesses, such as Consuela, a boutique on Congress Avenue near the Capitol, haven't felt the need to board up quite yet, although safety is a top priority, says Matt Ballard, who is part of the leadership at Consuela.<br/></p>
<p>Ballard said the Consuela leadership team would be playing it by ear before deciding to board up the shop.</p>
<p>"I think everyone's in the same camp of trying to see how things evolve," he said.</p>
<p>While the events of the past week and the announcement of nationwide demonstrations have cast a sense of tension, Ballard hasn't seen it change the way they, or their neighboring establishments, operate business. </p>
<p>As the day of President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration approaches, the Austin Police Department issued a statement about protests in the coming weeks.</p>
<p>"We do have reports of planned assemblies, and we are working with our law enforcement partners at DPS to ensure people are able to peacefully assemble and voice opinions, and we are able to keep people safe during that process. We fully respect people's ability to exercise their First Amendment rights, and we will be prepared to respond as needed to ensure the community's safety."</p>
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(Laura Figi/Austonia)
Workers start removing the boards around the Post Office.
Downtown Austin prepared for the worst and boarded up several businesses in preparation for anticipated protests last week. Today, more than a week after Election Day, some businesses are finally taking the boards down.
<p>Many businesses, including Cuba 512 and Kruger's Jewelers, are still boarded up. However, 7-Eleven, Total Men's Primary Care and the post office, are taking their boards down with no damage inflicted. </p><p>7-Eleven employee Lora Salinas said while they were preparing for destructive protests, none of the neighboring businesses had any issues with unrest.</p><p>"We're looking at a better week," Salinas said. "(Building managers) figured that they could take them down at this point. No unrest, nothing bad, everything was pretty calm and collected."</p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
<img class="rm-shortcode" data-height="3456" data-rm-shortcode-id="cb8f34bc7b3b3b551cef7f9183b10488" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDc3MDk3MS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYxOTY0ODIzMn0.GpXGLWsjLo0-rOCqVdFAG7HJpjmrqDv2v2tN1WYZBUc/img.jpg?width=980" data-width="5184" id="b2bd8" type="lazy-image"/>
<small class="image-media media-photo-credit" placeholder="Add Photo Credit...">(Laura Figi/Austonia)</small></p><p>While Austin have a joint protest-celebration over election results on Saturday, there was no looting or vandalism involved. One person was arrested in a <a href="https://austonia.com/presidential-rally" target="_blank">stabbing incident</a>.<br/></p><p>One construction worker, Katy Snyder, said the boards were left up because building managers expected protests to continue days after the election. </p><p>"We put them up last Sunday in prevention of any looting," Snyder said. "They were just trying to prevent any issues because we're on Congress." </p>
<p>Kruger's Jewelers, which still has its boards up, hasn't run into any problems with protests this time around. Kruger's Jewelers owner David Kruger said the boards will most likely be taken down sometime this week.</p><p>The shop tried to be extra prepared after suffering damage due to protesters earlier this year. Kruger said a protester threw a scooter through the store window during earlier protests. </p><p>"The police aren't powerless, but they're a little overwhelmed," Kruger said.</p><p>Zack Garhart recently moved to Austin from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and said, unfortunately, he is used to protests. Garhart said he was shocked that protests weren't more abundant in Austin. </p><p>"I hate the term 'new norm' but I think given the climate with society and all the tension, perhaps this is a temporary norm. I can understand why business owners might want to (board up) to be on the safe side," Garhart said. "It is unfortunate."</p>
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDc3MDk3NC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY3MTMwNTQ2NH0.jS8ZaguqjRb22pyWO5zfrVIwJqgPpbDZIdVNzaPxgsE/img.jpg?width=980" id="9c4b9" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="97760d2f5437ece2316b197c3a9ef67e" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="5184" data-height="3456" />
(Laura Figi/Austonia)
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'The Real World' house would no longer stand under proposed Austin Convention Center expansion plans
17 October 2020
(CC)
This 2009 photo shows "The Real World" house in Austin after it was converted to a Mexican restaurant and one year before Vince Young Steakhouse opened in the location.
Austin Convention Center expansion efforts took another step forward, setting up the potential demolition of two downtown blocks and one pop culture landmark.
<p>"The Real World" house, now home to <a href="https://vinceyoungsteakhouse.com/" target="_blank">Vince Young Steakhouse</a>, is located within the footprint of the event center's proposed westward expansion. City Council agreed Thursday to initiate land acquisition discussions and bring back property sale proposals by summer 2021.</p><div class="rm-embed embed-media"><iframe allowfullscreen="" aria-hidden="false" frameborder="0" height="450" src="https://www.google.com/maps/embed?pb=!1m18!1m12!1m3!1d3446.0266144593534!2d-97.74340508487967!3d30.2648228818025!2m3!1f0!2f0!3f0!3m2!1i1024!2i768!4f13.1!3m3!1m2!1s0x8644b5a7e33a8323%3A0xfeef9c57f4c7b9a3!2sVince%20Young%20Steakhouse!5e0!3m2!1sen!2sus!4v1602961076965!5m2!1sen!2sus" style="border:0;" tabindex="0" width="600"></iframe></div><p>The MTV show filmed in Austin in 2005 and debuted the same year. By the next year, Colorado-based Rio Grande Mexican Restaurant opened in the former "Real World" house at 3rd and San Jacinto, <a href="https://www.bizjournals.com/austin/stories/2006/04/17/story7.html" target="_blank">converting the home's infamous indoor pool</a> into a fountain, which still stands today.<br/></p><p>Other than the fountain, only the pool equipment remains today, according to Phillip Brown, owner and chef at Vince Young Steakhouse, which opened in November 2010 after Rio's closed. The location still draws the occasional tour group, he said.</p><p>"Every once in a while you'll see a big group of the segways out on the street corner talking about 'The Real World' house," Brown said. "So maybe that's brought us some business, too."</p><p>Vince Young Steakhouse is among several restaurants and businesses that would be impacted by the 750,000 square foot, $1.2 billion expansion proposal, which council members <a href="https://www.statesman.com/news/20190523/city-council-says-yes-to-12-billion-convention-center-expansion" target="_blank">approved in May 2019</a> and was upheld by voters later that year. Other local concepts in the area include <a href="https://www.cafebluetx.com/" target="_blank">Café Blue</a> and <a href="https://www.yorusushiatx.com/" target="_blank">YORU Sushi</a>, which opened earlier this year. </p><p>Despite recently renewing the restaurant's lease for the next 5 years, Brown said he and other nearby tenants fear the potential cost and burden of having to relocate sooner than anticipated. </p><p>"Are we here as long as we want to be here, or are we here another 2-3 years?" Brown said. "There's a lot of uncertainty right now for us."</p><p>Brown is hoping the city works with landowners to ensure displacement costs are covered for Vince Young Steakhouse and other impacted businesses. Eminent domain would obligate the city to provide such assistance, he said, although that idea has not been proposed publicly.</p><p>Exact details of the land purchase will be worked out as part of the negotiation process approved Thursday. City Council <a href="https://www.austintexas.gov/edims/document.cfm?id=325647" target="_blank">increased the hotel occupancy tax</a> last year from 7% to 9% to help finance the expansion.</p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
<img class="rm-shortcode" data-height="382" data-rm-shortcode-id="6c6a7f9b0675117b84c16e649ea95586" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDUyNzI5NS9vcmlnaW4ucG5nIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY1NjY1NDIwMH0.UpYN-HkwYbsIyNpuF7G2YmQHGjRoYl6WeTbqWXxBthk/img.png?width=980" data-width="661" id="a4e22" type="lazy-image"/>
<small class="image-media media-caption" placeholder="Add Photo Caption...">This rendering shows proposed plans for the Austin Convention Center westward expansion efforts.</small><small class="image-media media-photo-credit" placeholder="Add Photo Credit...">City of Austin</small></p><p>"This action is the first of a two-step approval process. … The second step of this process is anticipated for the summer of 2021, with a real estate purchase and sale agreement with accompanying documents," a city spokesperson said in a statement.<br/></p><p>The longtime warehouse converted into "The Real World" house is now valued at $16 million, according to the latest Travis Central Appraisal District records. When it was converted into a reality show setting in the mid-2000s, MTV <a href="http://www.realworldhouses.com/realworld16.html#:~:text=Austin%20Warehouse,west%20of%20the%20Austin%20Convention" target="_blank">reportedly</a> enlisted Austin-based designer <a href="https://joelmozersky.com/" target="_blank">Joel Mozersky</a>, who has gone on to gain notable clients, such as Uchi, Lonesome Dove and Native Hostel, among others. </p><p>"The Real World" house regains pop culture notoriety every few years. In 2005, the house was named "<a href="https://www.austinchronicle.com/locations/real-world-house-285830/" target="_blank">Best Bed & Brothel</a>" as part of an Austin Chronicle critics category created for that year alone. Well-known cast member Wes Bergmann <a href="http://www.mtv.com/news/2106283/real-world-austin-wes-house/" target="_blank">revisited the site</a> 10 years later, and most of the cast <a href="https://www.brit.co/mtv-real-world-austin/" target="_blank">reunited in 2018</a> when Bergmann got married.</p><p><a href="https://www.facebook.com/realworldonwatch/videos" target="_blank">Facebook Watch</a> is now streaming the full season of "The Real World" Austin for those who wish to relive the nostalgia.</p>
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(Austonia staff)
The Downtown Austin Alliance launched an economic recovery plan to address the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Downtown Austin Alliance announced on Tuesday a new economic recovery plan for downtown amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
<p>"As an organization with a sole purpose of enhancing the vitality and value of downtown, combined with the experience and leadership we have had in many of Austin's well-known design initiatives, projects and strategic plans and visions, the Downtown Austin Alliance is uniquely qualified to lead the way for downtown Austin's renaissance," CEO Dewitt Peart said in a statement. </p><p>"Roadmap to Recovery" will run through the spring of 2021 and consists of four phases: discovery, visioning, mapping and action.</p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
<img class="rm-shortcode" data-height="1005" data-rm-shortcode-id="397bce7c209abb5bef55477f0e0c95b6" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDQzNjUxOS9vcmlnaW4ucG5nIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY1OTYwNTEwMn0.hPUuX2WUN__xKNaOWENegFNLvY6zZ7Oz5kg95uavZI4/img.png?width=980" data-width="1468" id="76fc8" type="lazy-image"/>
<small class="image-media media-caption" placeholder="Add Photo Caption...">The Downtown Austin Alliance's "Roadmap to Recovery" consists of four phases.</small><small class="image-media media-photo-credit" placeholder="Add Photo Credit...">(Downtown Austin Alliance)</small></p><p>Between now and early 2021, the discovery phase will include focus groups, interviews, workshops and surveys to determine how the pandemic has impacted Austinites.<br/></p><p>Based on the findings, the visioning phase will develop key indicators by which to measure success, according to the specific economic sectors that drive downtown, such as the hotel, restaurant and bar, and <a href="https://austonia.com/city/austin-music-venues" target="_blank">music industries</a>. </p><p>The mapping phase will focus on positioning downtown for a quick recovery, and the action phase will focus on implementing, monitoring and adapting the roadmap to ensure it is successful in attracting <a href="https://austonia.com/austin-tourism-devastated" target="_blank">visitors and businesses to the city</a>. </p><p>"Our goal is to help businesses recover and facilitate engagement with downtown by employees, residents, visitors and creatives," Peart said. </p><p>The alliance has been involved in other recovery efforts since the pandemic began, including increasing cleaning protocols downtown and creating an economic impact index.</p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
<img class="rm-shortcode" data-height="971" data-rm-shortcode-id="f7e53c1f7247ec446da23da4910311ef" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDQzNjUyMC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYxMzY1OTcyMH0.FvzGbqEU9hZuWEpvXw38dvx0B90NmoDbryUusHIPncg/img.jpg?width=980" data-width="1673" id="7026e" type="lazy-image"/>
<small class="image-media media-caption" placeholder="Add Photo Caption...">The Downtown Austin Alliance has been involved in measuring the economic impact of the pandemic on downtown businesses. </small><small class="image-media media-photo-credit" placeholder="Add Photo Credit...">(Downtown Austin Alliance)</small></p><p>It has also advocated for relief locally, regionally and nationally, and its leadership has served on the Opening Central Texas Task Force.</p>
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