Paving the way for a proposed 31-story residential tower on the site of the historic Delta Kappa Gamma building at 416 W. 12th St., the Planning Commission voted 11-0-1 last Tuesday to recommend the requested Downtown Mixed-Use (DMU) zoning. The circa-1959 midcentury-modern building, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, serves as the […]
historic preservation
Official actions of a municipality such as the City of Austin taken to preserve structures with their jurisdiction. Preservation is often accompanied by a property tax exemption.
Posted inPreservation
Historic Landmark Commission delays log cabin relocation decision
Last month, the Historic Landmark Commission discussed a proposal to deconstruct and relocate a log cabin located at 5613 Patton Ranch Road. The cabin is on property owned by St. Andrew’s Episcopal School, a K-12 private school. The organization is looking to relocate the building to Pioneer Farms, a self-styled “living history museum” that sits […]
Posted inPreservation
Planning Commission recommends rezoning part of Baker School property historic, in break with landmark commission
At its Nov. 24 meeting, the Planning Commission voted to zone part of the Baker School property historic, embracing a staff-supported recommendation to omit historic zoning for the surrounding parking lots. The vote represented a break with the position of the Historic Landmark Commission, which had previously voted to zone the entire property at 3908 […]
Posted inPreservation
Landmark commission embraces common historic design standards for Austin
The Historic Landmark Commission has given its unanimous support to proposed design standards aimed at making it easier for neighborhoods to create historic districts in the city. If approved by City Council, the design standards will apply to existing historic landmarks, properties and National Register districts on an advisory basis. They will also apply to […]
Posted inPreservation
Landmark commission OKs historic zoning for Baker School and its parking lots
The Historic Landmark Commission voted to zone the entirety of the Baker School property historic at its recent meeting, despite a staff-supported alternative that would omit the surrounding parking lots. AISD sold the school, which was built in 1911, to the Alamo Drafthouse in 2018. At the time, the district explained it had accepted a […]
Posted inPreservation
Travis County now has an African American Cultural Heritage Commission
As of Sept. 8, Travis County officially has a commission dedicated to the preservation and celebration of African American cultural heritage. “We see a lot of the African American communities, artifacts and heirlooms being destroyed as we grow in size as a city,” said Commissioner Jeff Travillion, who sponsored the establishment of the commission at […]
Posted inPreservation
Historic Landmark Commission vetoes skyscraper design for historic building
In recent months, there have been several cases of developers proposing multi-story buildings as a way to preserve the facades of historic structures while balancing the economics of Austin real estate. On Aug. 24, the Historic Landmark Commission firmly put its foot down on the practice of constructing skyscrapers above historic buildings when it denied […]
Posted inPreservation
HLC wants further scrutiny of home in the ‘Air-Conditioned Village’
Seventy years ago, 22 homes in Northwest Austin served as the test case for bringing central air conditioning to the middle classes. Today only 15 of those homes remain standing, with one more proposed for demolition. The midcentury modern home at 2502 Park View Drive was originally known as the “Air Temp” house, as it […]
Posted inPreservation
Scarbrough Building narrowly avoids losing tax relief status
The historic Scarbrough Building had a close call with its tax abatement status when the Historic Landmark Commission voted unanimously at its April 27 meeting to remove its eligibility status. When the Velvet Taco restaurant opened a new outdoor seating area, workers removed three panes of glass from the bottom floor of the historic Scarbrough […]
Posted inPreservation
Historic Landmark Commission looks to save Rainey Street’s Bungalow
For years, 90-92 Rainey St. has been home to the Bungalow and the Container Bar, but those two nightlife fixtures could soon be replaced with a 53-floor high rise. However, the Historic Landmark Commission did not greet the project with approval at its meeting on April 27 and instead postponed the case until next month. […]
Posted inCity Hall
Historic zoning, demolitions on hold for the time being
When it comes to zoning cases, the city has carved many different timelines into the code to keep cases moving forward. Those timelines are currently on hold. For historic zoning cases, non-administratively approved applications have been stopped in their tracks until the Historic Landmark Commission can reconvene. Jerry Rusthoven, the assistant director of the Planning […]
Posted inPreservation
City offers info sessions for next round of historic preservation grants
The city has opened the application process for the latest round of grants to aid in the preservation of historic structures that can promote cultural tourism throughout Austin. With a May 1 deadline looming, the Heritage Tourism Division has scheduled the first in a series of information sessions to take place at the City Hall […]