Austin’s historic Rainey Street is welcoming a new neighbor. The Paseo, a 48-story mixed-used residential tower, will bring 557 apartments and two levels of retail to the popular Austin entertainment district, known for houses that have been converted into bungalow bars and restaurants. The Paseo’s groundbreaking took place in late February.
The project is located at an infill site on Rainey Street that was previously used as a food-truck lot. The development preserves and incorporates two historic bungalows that have operated as bars and now will serve as commercial space. Masonry brickwork on the building podium also connects the building with its neighborhood.
In addition to the Paseo’s street-facing retail and restaurants, the high-rise tower’s ground floor includes alcoves in the building’s street frontage to create social space and allow for sidewalk cafes. Between the main building and the bungalows, a landscaped garden and walkway connect Rainey Street to the riverfront park and trails.
The above-ground parking garage features a plant-lined masonry façade. A series of staggered setbacks atop the parking podium open up to an amenity deck providing views of the city and Lady Bird Lake. The project aims to reduce vehicle traffic loads on Rainey Street by moving vehicular access, loading, and pick-up away from the street.
Above the garage podium, the residential tower features patterned glass and protruding balconies intended to reflect the dynamic atmosphere of Rainey Street. The residential levels “are arranged in staggered tiers that seem to organically erode into the building mass,” according to a statement from the development’s architect, Pappageorge Haymes Partners.
The Paseo offers 10% onsite affordable housing and preserves most of the existing onsite trees. The project also includes 34,000 sf of building amenities.
The development is scheduled for completion in 2025.
On the Building Team:
Owner /developer: LV Collective
Architect: Pappageorge Haymes Partners
MEP engineer: Blum Consulting Engineers, Inc.
Structural engineer: DCI Engineers
General contractor/construction manager: JE Dunn Construction Company
Landscape Architect: TBG Partners
Related Stories
Sponsored | Fire and Life Safety | Jul 12, 2023
Fire safety considerations for cantilevered buildings [AIA course]
Bold cantilevered designs are prevalent today, as developers and architects strive to maximize space, views, and natural light in buildings. Cantilevered structures, however, present a host of challenges for building teams, according to José R. Rivera, PE, Associate Principal and Director of Plumbing and Fire Protection with Lilker.
Mass Timber | Jul 11, 2023
5 solutions to acoustic issues in mass timber buildings
For all its advantages, mass timber also has a less-heralded quality: its acoustic challenges. Exposed wood ceilings and floors have led to issues with excessive noise. Mass timber experts offer practical solutions to the top five acoustic issues in mass timber buildings.
Multifamily Housing | Jul 11, 2023
Converting downtown office into multifamily residential: Let’s stop and think about this
Is the office-to-residential conversion really what’s best for our downtowns from a cultural, urban, economic perspective? Or is this silver bullet really a poison pill?
Adaptive Reuse | Jul 10, 2023
California updates building code for adaptive reuse of office, retail structures for housing
The California Building Standards Commission recently voted to make it easier to convert commercial properties to residential use. The commission adopted provisions of the International Existing Building Code (IEBC) that allow developers more flexibility for adaptive reuse of retail and office structures.
Mixed-Use | Jun 29, 2023
Massive work-live-play development opens in LA's new Cumulus District
VOX at Cumulus, a 14-acre work-live-play development in Los Angeles, offers 910 housing units and 100,000 sf of retail space anchored by a Whole Foods outlet. VOX, one of the largest mixed-use communities to open in the Los Angeles area, features apartments and townhomes with more than one dozen floorplans.
Multifamily Housing | Jun 29, 2023
5 ways to rethink the future of multifamily development and design
The Gensler Research Institute’s investigation into the residential experience indicates a need for fresh perspectives on residential design and development, challenging norms, and raising the bar.
Office Buildings | Jun 28, 2023
When office-to-residential conversion works
The cost and design challenges involved with office-to-residential conversions can be daunting; designers need to devise creative uses to fully utilize the space.
Multifamily Housing | Jun 28, 2023
Sutton Tower, an 80-story multifamily development, completes construction in Manhattan’s Midtown East
In Manhattan’s Midtown East, the construction of Sutton Tower, an 80-story residential building, has been completed. Located in the Sutton Place neighborhood, the tower offers 120 for-sale residences, with the first move-ins scheduled for this summer. The project was designed by Thomas Juul-Hansen and developed by Gamma Real Estate and JVP Management. Lendlease, the general contractor, started construction in 2018.
Affordable Housing | Jun 27, 2023
Racial bias concerns prompt lawmakers to ask HUD to ban biometric surveillance, including facial recognition
Two members of the U.S. House of Representative have asked the Department of Housing and Urban Development to end the use of biometric technology, including facial recognition, for surveillance purposes in public housing.
