Building

Two cranes are up where there used to be a Hooter's Restaurant on Riverside at South First.

Winter Sunrise

Occasionally we still get a nice sunrise even though we are being hemmed in by buildings. This view is over some shorter buildings and toward the lake and Rainey Street and East Avenue. Appropriately, there is a crane in the view.

There Goes the Capitol View

A rather large building is going up across from a club we belong to on Sixth Street (The Headliners). I think the Capitol Dome may disappear behind this one.

Another Hotel Rises on Cesar Chavez

I believe this building at Trinity and Cesar Chavez which is getting way up there is going to be a Marriott property.

Rising On Red River

This construction on Red River is getting started in earnest. I believe it will be an office building across from the Hotel Van Zandt.

Last bit of Construction on Shoal Creek Downtown

 In addition to the Proper Hotel and condos at left, the Northshore visible behind the equipment and 500 West Second (aka the Google building) which is north of the Northshore, there will be a fourth building on the site of old Green Water Treatment plant. I shot a picture of the drilling equipment being used from the trail beside the Central Library on the other side of the creek.

Reflection of Our Home

Before we moved downtown there was a low-slung and quite ugly music venue (which also had terrible seating, bathrooms, and acoustics) across the street. They tore it down (scraped the lot) and built a low-slung, not quite as ugly (but close) music venue with terrible seating, bathrooms, and acoustics that was finished shortly before we got here. Because some better music venues came online it was used for disruptive concerts where drug use was prevalent and the attendees often left the neighborhood a mess. It was torn down and a large office building was built which is about to open. Our building is reflected in its facade in this picture.

Ready the Rebar

With another high rise in the background, these workers ready the rebar for the pour of a column on another office building.

SoCo Rising

Lots of construction going on down on South Congress.

Lunch Money?

This construction worker, likely working on the 70 Rainey project, uses this old phone booth reimagined into an ATM for late-night partiers although he's probably looking for some cash for a food truck for lunch.

Four hard-working people

We spotted four construction workers in the cold and rain on top of the new Zaza hotel, guiding concrete into forms the other afternoon. That's some serious stamina.

Mix Master?

This contraption on a job site caught our attention the other day. We think it is a fancy cement mixer. But who knows?

Two brave men, one big building

These guys are making a terrifying task look easy. I got a photo of them working on the building across the street on a recent afternoon.

Tracking Independent Progress

The Independent Condominiums rise on the west bank of Shoal Creek. That's our building (the 360) in the background on the other side of the creek.This will be the tallest building in Austin when completed.

A big pour!

Yes, another construction shot, but this one is kind of amazing. With these huge devices, they can pour concrete on these huge buildings so quickly.

Ten Years Later

Ten years ago today we started this blog with a picture of the Ballet Austin building which was under construction. That picture, looking east, showed the AMLI on Second building still under construction. Our building was just rising up looking the other direction. Looking west today from that spot, ten years later, you can see our building on the right, occupied now for about nine years. You can see a building under construction just to the left of that. This is the Independent Condominiums which will rise across the creek to be the tallest building in Austin. To the left of that, you can see the completed Seaholm Condominiums. The cranes across Nueces from the Ballet are for an office building called Third+Shoal. It's amazing what a difference ten years makes.

Men Working

It's not all done by machine. The building going up where the Austin Music Hall used to be was pouring columns. Those guys are guiding the funnel into the forms. The poster on the fence (lower left) shows what the office building will ultimately look like.

Open Air Stairs

This stairway is exposed at the new business building under construction at the University of Texas.

Where's That Crane?

It's not often that you see the end of a crane rope in front of your condo window. They were using a portable hydraulic crane to assemble the static one for a building just south of us.

Getting on up there!

The office building and the hotel to the south of our condo tower are "coming out of the ground." Here is a new shot of the site.