In addition to helping with finish selections for most homeowners, Austin interior design house Laura Britt Design has custom-designed several striking units within The Austonian high-rise condos. See the design firm’s inspiring work as well as examples of interiors in the Four Seasons Residences and the W Residences in the Fall 2011 issue of Austin Home (formerly Austin Monthly Home).
The above slide show is of 26HC, a seven bedroom and five-and-a-half bathroom home at The Austonian. It is listed for sale at $2.8 million.
As of August 28th, Austin has officially set a new record of consecutive days over 100 degrees in one year. With the temperatures continuing to rise, and water in short supply, the City of Austin will implement additional water usage restrictions on September 6th. This second phase of water restrictions will further limit the use of water for landscape. The restrictions will also extend to restaurants, who will not serve water unless requested, and the washing of sidewalks and other paved areas.
Water conservation can be achieved by a variety of means ranging from consumption reduction to recycling water for reuse. The developers of The Austonian incorporated water conservation plans into the design of the 56-story building, which occupies just one-third of a city block and provides 166 residences on less than three-quarters of an acre.
The Austonian incorporates low-water plants in its 10th-floor green roof terrace and irrigates the plans with reclaimed water from the building’s cooling system. As a result, The Austonian uses a very limited amount of public water for street-level irrigation and no water for irrigation of the 10th-floor green roof terrace. By comparison, a suburban community with 166 homes uses an estimated 33.2 million gallons of water per year for landscape watering. Additionally, The Austonian has incorporated low-flow toilets, lavatories and showerheads which reduce the use of potable water by at least 30 percent over typical fixtures.
For more information about The Austonian and the sustainability of the building, visit www.theaustonian.com.
Many people have wondered for years what inspired the architecture of the Frost Bank Tower, which was the tallest building in the Austin skyline for quite some time. While the Austin skyline would not be the same without it, the design of the building has jokingly been said to resemble anything from a giant owl to a nose hair clipper. KVUE News decided to lay the rumors to rest, and went straight to the source of the design by contacting the office of Turan Duda, AIA — the man who is credited with designing the unique building.
According to Duda, the 515-foot building peaks with a “pyramidal translucent crown,” an answer that still leaves much to the viewer’s imagination. Duda explained that the inspiration behind the building was to create a tower with a focal point similar to New York’s Chrysler and Empire State buildings. He told the Austin American-Statesman that he wanted to “create a building that comes to a singular statement at the top, a clear, memorable symbol.” It’s a building that he claimed to be “the missing piece in the Austin skyline.”
While Frost Bank Tower certainly filled that missing piece in 2004, The Austonian and 360 Condominiums stand tall, towering over Frost’s 33 floors, adding even more perspective to Austin’s rising skyline.
The Austonian Club is a private club where homeowners can host meetings, parties and events.
Located on the 55th floor of The Austonian luxury high-rise building in downtown Austin, the 6,000-square-foot club has 360-degree views of downtown Austin and the surrounding Texas Hill Country. Two observation decks are located on the north and south ends of the facility. The private club is one of a kind, as it is located in the crown of The Austonian, which is the tallest building in Austin and the tallest residential building West of the Mississippi.
With a configuration that supports everything from intimate dinners for 16 to large events for 250, the club has a lounge, dining area and large event room. All of the aforementioned spaces may be configured to support a large event.
An on-staff event planner that is a member of The Austonian concierge team is available to plan events at the club.
To date, the club has been used for events including fundraisers for nonprofit organizations, a sleepover for a young homeowner and friends, a wedding and a high school prom.
For more information about The Austonian’s amenities, visit The Austonian website.
In the bustling 2nd Street District, historical treasures remain carefully preserved above and below ground. At The Austonian, Austin’s premier luxury residence, a historic landmark has been integrated into the building, allowing visitors to experience Austin’s past while enjoying its more contemporary amenities. Further down the stretch of 2nd Street that’s also known as Willie Nelson Boulevard, a general store stands tucked in a corner, surrounded by a retail and office building that helps to anchor the mixed-use district.
The base of The Austonian high-rise condos features the 100-year-old façade of the Brown-Dumas Blacksmith Shop. At the turn of the 20th century, the shop was an integral part of Austin’s thriving commercial core, where dirt streets and horse and buggies dominated the scene. Built circa 1905, it was the largest building on the block at that time. The original plan was to integrate the historic structure into The Austonian, but when the Brown-Dumas building collapsed in a wind storm in 2006, the plan changed to a reconstruction of the façade at the original site. Today, the restored façade – which is home to frozen yogurt shop BerryAustin2Go – is the only remaining façade of its era near this important intersection of Congress Avenue and 2nd Street (originally known as Live Oak Street). In early 2011, the façade was awarded a historic landmark designation from the City of Austin. An associated tax exemption was not requested or granted to the property.
As for other historic sites along the street, Lamberts Downtown Barbecue, on the southwest corner of 2nd and Guadalupe, is located in the Schneider Brothers Building, which was built in 1873 and housed one of the first general stores in town. The Schneiders were German immigrants and one of Austin’s most prominent families at the turn of the century. Their business expanded to the NW corner of the intersection, where a second store was built over a limestone basement the family had constructed for storage (and, it is believed, in anticipation of brewing beer). La Condesa was literally built around these subterranean vaults, which are available for private dining, hence the restaurant’s distinctive elevated bar.
Austin historic preservation expert Emily Little, FAIA participated in aspects of all of the aforementioned projects. Emily is an architect with Clayton&Little Architects. Other local projects that she has worked on include the Hotel St. Cecilia and The Byrne-Reed House (home of Humanities Texas).
Last week The Austonian luxury condos won a “Best Commercial Real Estate” award in the Mixed Use category from the Austin Business Journal. Here are a few components of the mixed-use design:
1) Density and green building. The Austonian provides luxury living for 166 families on less than two-thirds of an acre. This supports energy conservation – less water for lawns, a reduced number of car trips per resident per day, and more efficient cooling via chilled water from a central plant. The Austonian has received a four-star rating from Austin Energy Green Building, which is comparable to a LEED Gold rating.
2) The creation of a vertical neighborhood. Within The Austonian, there are over 40,000 square feet of amenities where residents can entertain guests and relax. Facilities include a green roof terrace with outdoor kitchens and a pool, a 10th-floor pet park, a 56th-floor fitness center with 360-degree views, and the 55th-floor Austonian Club, which can host parties up to 300.
3) Creating a 24/7 downtown neighborhood. While The Austonian serves as a mixed-use community within the building, it also connects to the surrounding neighborhood, adding residents – a critical need – to downtown Austin. Grocery stores, dry cleaners, and places to eat, shop and hang out are within a few minutes’ walk of The Austonian.
More information about The Austonian luxury condos in downtown Austin is available at www.theaustonian.com.
Photo: The view from The Austonian Club (55th floor), Credit: Thomas McConnell
Multi Family Executive profiled The Austonian this month in an article entitled “High on Green: A luxurious, green residential tower in Austin, Texas heeds a former mayor’s call for a livable, populated urban core.”
Read more about The Austonian and the vision behind the project here.
The Austonian has received a “Going Green Award” green building award from the Austin Business Journal for its commitment to green living. The Going Green awards, announced on January 26, honor those in Central Texas who make efforts to incorporate environmentally sustainable practices.
The building is going green to celebrate – see our “smile” tonight after dusk.
Earlier this month, The Austonian hosted a cocktail party in the Laura Britt-designed unit on the 41st floor of the building. A slideshow of photos from the event is below. For more information on Laura Britt design, visit http://www.laurabrittdesign.com/.
Last month, The Austonian won a national construction award from McGraw-Hill Construction. The Austonian is the only award-winning project from Texas. A total of 21 national winners were selected.
The Austonian was selected for a 2010 Best of Award in the Multi-Family Residential/Hospitality category. The Best of Awards recognizes design and construction excellence. The national winners were selected from a pool of regional winners that were announced in McGraw-Hill Construction’s ten regional publications. The Austonian received a regional Best of award from Texas Construction in December 2010.
