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The Downtown Austin Blog, or "DAB", focuses on life in downtown and Austin’s urban core. We discuss topics of interest to downtown Austin residents, retailers, and stakeholders, including coverage of city politics, transit, downtown Austin real estate (condos, lofts, etc), new urbanism, and sustainability.
In honor of Fun Fun Fun Fest (this weekend at Waterloo Park), I thought I’d write a fun, fun, fun and fantastical story that incorporates some of the band names (with links to their Myspace pages or Website) that will be playing. Because word games are fun, and not at all nerdy.
RATATAT!!! Was the sound made by some group of Night Marchers, and heard loudly in the Crystal Castles of Montreal (which just happens to be less than 7 Seconds from the Moonlight Towers, but an incredible distance from Harlem.) Regarding all this noise, Why? Well, the marchers were a group of The Laughing Young Widows, along with their All Leather wearing Street Dogs (whom, by the way, kept running Russian Circles around the Strange Boys that were passing by) were on their annual Mission of Burma to find the Shonen Knife and to finally come Face to Face with Lucero (who, in his ever Growing power, would grant them the gifts of the mighty Destroyer.)
The plan that this Youth Brigade had was to Broadcast the Atlas Sound and light the sacred D.R.I Torche in The Underground Railroad to Candyland, where hopefully they would meet Lucero. Then, these Cool Kids would Reign Supreme, yelling “Off With Their Heads” to the deaf yeasayers and the already Dead Confederates who made mayhem in the Coliseum there. Things might get Fucked Up, but they were prepared for The Roller coaster, and did not let the bitter warnings of “This Will Destroy You!” upset their brave Foot Patrol or push their Fuck Buttons.
Danzig, the Neon Indian who was their king, donned ceremonial Crystal Antlers atop his Royal Bangs. He seemed to have No Age – to be in perfect HEALTH. Death could not touch him. His Kid Sister, whom they called Mika Miko, however, was definitely one of the Whitest Kids U’Know (or will ever know – trust me on this). Red Sparowes told of how her whiteness was brighter than Alaska in Winter.
As their journey wore on, the group began to Coalesce like a Melt Banana – their purpose was clear and true. There were the Bankrupt and the Borrowers during these Black and White Years, but one Pack of Wolves would begin the New Movement that had been wished for since the beginning, since the time of Vega. It was time….to conquer, to entertain, to get on with things…it was time to go to FUN FUN FUN FEST!
Enjoy everybody!
“it’s official” yada yada… lot’s of noise about this on the ‘tubes in recent weeks, but Obama has officially signed off on everything. I’ve yet to confirm if the FHA will continue to allow buyers to monetize this credit [on FHA approved condos] in order to use it as a down payment. If so, that makes this program even more attractive.
The chart below is helpful in clearly outlining what’s available and changing.
New Tax Credit Chart
This week’s Chronicle is packed with interesting articles.
1) Wells weighs in on downtownAustinfacts.com.
2) Katherine Gregor nearly writes a book comparing Austin’s efforts toward regional sustainability to Copenhagen’s embrace of sustainable mobility and bicycles. BTW, have you seen the BIXI system of shared bicycles? 
3) Is a planetarium bound for Austin? Richard Garriott believes it’s a good idea.
Phase 1 improvements to Republic Square should be complete before the new year
One of downtown Austin’s most cherished parks is Republic Square, located between 4th and 5th streets, just west of the Plaza Lofts. The park has been under construction, recently getting a much needed face lift. Charlie McCabe, director of the Austin Parks Foundation, visited with DANA yesterday to discuss the progress of the park’s improvements, and to share a bit of history.
Did you know this is where Edwin Waller, the first Mayor of Austin and the namesake of Waller Creek, in 1839 held the original land auction for Austin’s downtown blocks?
“…city lots were auctioned under the shade of the live oak trees on what is now called Republic Square. A small grove of live oaks – known as the Auction Oaks – survive at the southwest corner of the square today.”
The focal point of the park is a 300 year old oak tree. Considering this was a parking lot for decades, with asphalt up to the tree, it’s astonishing these trees have survived so long. The new design by TBG Partners gives the tree breathing space with a raised ipe wood deck built around the tree.
Other changes to the park include leveling the berms – the raised artificial grass hills – which limited visibility into the park. Republic Square will actually grow by 17′ to the west, as San Antonio St becomes a promenade in front of the stairs to the still-under-construction Federal Courthouse. Beginning in January, when the phase one improvements are complete, the Austin Farmers Market will relocated into the park.
The Austin Parks Foundation works diligently to raise money for Austin parks. The $450,000 improvement budget comes from the Austin City Limits music festival, Downtown Austin Neighborhood Association, Downtown Austin Alliance, General Services Administration, Gables Apartments, and others.
Downtown Austin Blog was provided with early access to the still-under-construction Austonian in order to snap a few photos of the luxury building’s interior finishes. The unit you are looking at above is the northeastern corner, “D” floor plan, on the 11th floor. This will become a staged model unit within the next few weeks. Beginning at the unit’s front door – made from Italian walnut – the standard finish packages are the highest quality we’ve seen in a downtown Austin residential tower, thus far.
We were impressed with the kitchen features: Scavolini cabinets, white carrera marble counters and back splash, built in Sub Zero refrigerator, Wolf gas-range, Miele coffee maker, Dornbracht fixtures. American walnut floors through out. All units outfitted with solar shades. From the 11th floor you have a clear view of the Capitol.
Link to DAB’s coverage of the Austonian
With a wide-angle lens, unmerited photographic hubris, and perfect weather including a moon dancing above downtown Austin’s skyline, the photos below were taken yesterday evening.
(Looking for this week’s open houses? You’ll find them here.)
Open houses in downtown Austin for Sunday, November 1st
The great thing about downtown Austin open houses is that you can generally walk from building to building. Take a stroll downtown now that summer is over and the temperature is cooler. If you’re into adaptive reuses of older buildings, checkout DAB’s list of downtown Austin lofts. Looking for FHA approved condos? We’ve got the info here.
This weekend you can browse at your own pace at Austin City Lofts, The Shore, Villas On Town Lake, Spring, and the Austonian sales center.
Sunday
1) 603 David St #911, 2bd, 2ba, $425,000, 1-3pm [Urbanspace] map
2) 800 W 5th St #201, 2bd, 2ba, $649,900, 1-3pm [Urbanspace] map
3) 80 Red River #103, 2bd, 2ba, $309,000, 1-3pm [John Horton Realty] map
4) 300 Bowie St, Spring sales center, model units, 1-5pm map
5) 200 Congress Ave, Austonian sales center located at 300 W 6th, 12-5pm map
I love sushi. However, I DON’T love spending a ridiculous amount of money on said beloved sushi. Enter Piranha Killer Sushi (beware, this is one of those websites with the music….), a sushi restaurant on 2nd & San Jacinto (right next to Max’s Wine Dive) with a nice vibe and a reasonably priced (for sushi) menu.
Here’s what I ate (with pricing info) in order of appearance:
Shrimp Tempura Roll - $7.95
Spicy Tuna Roll - $5.50
Creme Brulee - $6.95
I also splurged and had a kettle of hot green tea and an appetizer salad. My total for EVERYTHING was around $30, which sounds like a lot, until you remember that it’s SUSHI we’re talking about – and that I had a bunch of other stuff, too! And the sushi is good! Not great, but good. My shrimp tempura roll…well, okay, the tempura part tasted a little wonky and not like at other more expensive places, and honestly, my “spicy” sauce on my spicy tuna roll wasn’t totally awesome either, but I could still tell the quality of the fish was fairly good. And nothing was bad or tasted gross or anything like that….I’m gonna put it like this – the food is appropriate for the price point. It ain’t Uchi, folks – but then again, it ain’t Uchi (i.e., I don’t have to be an NBA player to afford a solid meal there). I guess the real test would have been to have some sashimi or full-on sushi, which I did not do because I only really like/eat rolls generally at any other sushi place.
While the taste may not have been absolute perfection, the presentation was a step in that direction, for sure. All of the food was presented in a fun, clean, and crisp way. It was colorful and looked fresh and appetizing (see above photos).
And the atmosphere holds the same attributes as the food presentation. The vibe is light, clean, and airy. I dig the Eanes®-style chairs, the natural-like wood grain finishes and furnishings, and the overall DWR-esque-with-a warm-twist style (very clean and modern, but warm and light):
Bottom line: for the money, I think it’s a good call, and a place that deserves and at least one try for those looking for a decent, not too expensive sushi joint in downtown Austin.
The Skinny:
Location: 207 San Jacinto, Austin, TX, 78701
Hours:
- Monday – Wednesday: 11am to 10 pm
- Thursday: 11am to 11pm
- Friday: 11am to ext. hours
- Saturday: 12pm to ext. hours
- Sunday: 12pm to 10pm
’til next time….
LOL Sushi Cat Says "KTHXBAI"
Yesterday, the marketing team at the Austonian invited us to tour the building. This was my third time [near] to the top, and this time I remembered my camera! The 54th floor is the top residential floor. Floors 55 & 56 will be common area for the building. I dragged Amber along. She’s a trooper. Construction elevators to the highest floor in the tallest residential tower west of the Mississippi are fun.
TRAINING SESSION: 6TH STREET NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH
We have scheduled a training session with officer Carlisle and officer Ehrler who help coordinate the Austin neighborhood watch programs. The meeting will be held at the Alamo Drafthouse at the Rizt (320 E 6th Street) at 3:00 PM on Thursday, October 29. Complimentary drinks and light snacks will be available.Officers Carlisle and Ehrler will train residents and business owners on how to safely patrol the district, what to look for and how to report and give us guidance on setting up a system appropriate for our neighborhood.Following the training, we will then meet as a group to discuss a system that is appropriate for our neighborhood.
If you are interested in attending this meeting, please RSVP to info@6thstreetaustin.com
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