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
Apartments | Jun 4, 2024
Apartment sizes on the rise after decade-long shrinking trend
The average size of new apartments in the U.S. saw substantial growth in 2023, bouncing back to 916 sf after a steep decline the previous year. That is according to a recent RentCafe market insight report released this month.
Multifamily Housing | Jun 3, 2024
Grassroots groups becoming a force in housing advocacy
A growing movement of grassroots organizing to support new housing construction is having an impact in city halls across the country. Fed up with high housing costs and the commonly hostile reception to new housing proposals, advocacy groups have sprung up in many communities to attend public meetings to speak in support of developments.
MFPRO+ News | Jun 3, 2024
New York’s office to residential conversion program draws interest from 64 owners
New York City’s Office Conversion Accelerator Program has been contacted by the owners of 64 commercial buildings interested in converting their properties to residential use.
MFPRO+ News | Jun 3, 2024
Seattle mayor wants to scale back energy code to spur more housing construction
Seattle’s mayor recently proposed that the city scale back a scheduled revamping of its building energy code to help boost housing production. The proposal would halt an update to the city’s multifamily and commercial building energy code that is scheduled to take effect later this year.
Resiliency | Jun 3, 2024
Houston’s buyout program has prevented flood damage but many more homes at risk
Recent flooding in Houston has increased focus on a 30-year-old program to buy out some of the area’s most vulnerable homes. Storms dropped 23 inches of rain on parts of southeast Texas, leading to thousands of homes being flooded in low-lying neighborhoods around Houston.
MFPRO+ New Projects | May 29, 2024
Two San Francisco multifamily high rises install onsite water recycling systems
Two high-rise apartment buildings in San Francisco have installed onsite water recycling systems that will reuse a total of 3.9 million gallons of wastewater annually. The recycled water will be used for toilet flushing, cooling towers, and landscape irrigation to significantly reduce water usage in both buildings.
MFPRO+ News | May 28, 2024
ENERGY STAR NextGen Certification for New Homes and Apartments launched
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently launched ENERGY STAR NextGen Certified Homes and Apartments, a voluntary certification program for new residential buildings. The program will increase national energy and emissions savings by accelerating the building industry’s adoption of advanced, energy-efficient technologies, according to an EPA news release.
MFPRO+ News | May 24, 2024
Austin, Texas, outlaws windowless bedrooms
Austin, Texas will no longer allow developers to build windowless bedrooms. For at least two decades, the city had permitted developers to build thousands of windowless bedrooms.
Mass Timber | May 22, 2024
3 mass timber architecture innovations
As mass timber construction evolves from the first decade of projects, we're finding an increasing variety of mass timber solutions. Here are three primary examples.
Mixed-Use | May 22, 2024
Multifamily properties above ground-floor grocers continue to see positive rental premiums
Optimizing land usage is becoming an even bigger priority for developers. In some city centers, many large grocery stores sprawl across valuable land.