Austin’s been growing so fast the last 30 plus years, they’ve got to be running into infrastructure issues for sure..damonhynes wrote: Fri Aug 12, 2022 1:53 pm Shoot--pretty soon the government and university will have to move!
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San Antonio has always had a meager skyline for its size. Its bread and butter, until recently, was government, especially the military—-several bases in town. The local economy didn’t lend itself to the types of companies that would build high rises, and it had a relatively poor population. I’d still choose it over Dallas or Houston for a vacation, though—-lots of history and local color; a very unique place for this country. Lived In 6 cities in my teens and 20’s, and discovered that it takes more than a nice skyline to make a city vibrant and livable. The trick is to make a downtown worth your time, and Omaha is doing a pretty good job with that. Some of these impressive skylines, and the neighborhoods where they exist, are dead zones after 6pm.Omaha Cowboy wrote: Mon Aug 15, 2022 3:53 pm I don’t think Austin will ever pass Dallas or Houston for skyline prominence in Texas..But they are solidly 3rd..
San Antonio is probably a distant 4th. And imo, Omaha’s skyline is more impressive than San Antonio’s. Once Mutual of Omaha’s HQ’s skyscraper is completed, there will be no question on that…
Ciao..LiO…Peace
Agree, I was in San Antonio in 2019. Skylines aren't everything. We spent a whole day walking around DT San Antonio, we also went to DT Austin just drove around for maybe 20 minutes then left, never felt the need to get out and explore it.ricko wrote: Mon Aug 15, 2022 8:08 pmSan Antonio has always had a meager skyline for its size. Its bread and butter, until recently, was government, especially the military—-several bases in town. The local economy didn’t lend itself to the types of companies that would build high rises, and it had a relatively poor population. I’d still choose it over Dallas or Houston for a vacation, though—-lots of history and local color; a very unique place for this country. Lived In 6 cities in my teens and 20’s, and discovered that it takes more than a nice skyline to make a city vibrant and livable. The trick is to make a downtown worth your time, and Omaha is doing a pretty good job with that. Some of these impressive skylines, and the neighborhoods where they exist, are dead zones after 6pm.Omaha Cowboy wrote: Mon Aug 15, 2022 3:53 pm I don’t think Austin will ever pass Dallas or Houston for skyline prominence in Texas..But they are solidly 3rd..
San Antonio is probably a distant 4th. And imo, Omaha’s skyline is more impressive than San Antonio’s. Once Mutual of Omaha’s HQ’s skyscraper is completed, there will be no question on that…
Ciao..LiO…Peace
….and, btw, I think San Antonio has the most vibrant downtown in Texas, with Austin (if you include 6th St.) a close second.
Don’t disagree with what you’re saying at all. I’ve been to San Antonio many times. I like it. It has a unique vibe and architecture all its own. Certainly skylines don’t make a city..but it’s nice to have both an impressive downtown skyline and surrounding urban core- Omaha is developing just that..ricko wrote: Mon Aug 15, 2022 8:08 pmSan Antonio has always had a meager skyline for its size. Its bread and butter, until recently, was government, especially the military—-several bases in town. The local economy didn’t lend itself to the types of companies that would build high rises, and it had a relatively poor population. I’d still choose it over Dallas or Houston for a vacation, though—-lots of history and local color; a very unique place for this country. Lived In 6 cities in my teens and 20’s, and discovered that it takes more than a nice skyline to make a city vibrant and livable. The trick is to make a downtown worth your time, and Omaha is doing a pretty good job with that. Some of these impressive skylines, and the neighborhoods where they exist, are dead zones after 6pm.Omaha Cowboy wrote: Mon Aug 15, 2022 3:53 pm I don’t think Austin will ever pass Dallas or Houston for skyline prominence in Texas..But they are solidly 3rd..
San Antonio is probably a distant 4th. And imo, Omaha’s skyline is more impressive than San Antonio’s. Once Mutual of Omaha’s HQ’s skyscraper is completed, there will be no question on that…
Ciao..LiO…Peace
….and, btw, I think San Antonio has the most vibrant downtown in Texas, with Austin (if you include 6th St.) a close second.
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You likely might have been there on an off night..but compared to 2010, the vibrancy in the Dallas downtown and core area is much, MUCH different today..It’s a fantastic place, and so many places to go and explore..My 25 year old nephew and his roommate just moved into a townhouse type apartment in downtown Dallas. Partly because he is now within walking distance of the flagship Omni Hotel where he works..but also because he loves the area and nightlife…skinzfan23 wrote: Tue Aug 16, 2022 2:10 am Weird, I haven’t been to Dallas for about 12 years but when I went the downtown was a ghost town town after 5pm. There was absolutely nothing going on. I got to take a tour of Fountain Place to a friends office about 30 stories up for a nice view though. There were some really nice nightlife areas on the outskirts of downtown, but the actually core was probably more dead than Omaha’s st night. (It was the middle of the week)
Aldo include for Omaha- North Downtown, The Mercantile district..adding density just east of the Old Market and GLM, Benson, Little Bohemia and the Blackstone district to your list..Doctor Fate wrote: Thu Aug 18, 2022 7:16 pm There was a small discussion on one of the Austin Skyscraper Forum threads about how Austin would feel bigger if it had more dense urban centers outside of downtown. I'm thinking Omaha's feel and vibe will benefit from having Aksarben Village, Heartwood Preserve, Crossroads, River's Edge and the Dodge Golf Course, and maybe La Vista City Centre (among others) if they are developed well.
What’s amazing is, 20 or so years ago, about 75% of this skyline didn’t exist in Austin..
1. I agree wholeheartedly about the infrastructure, as far as the highway system goes. I first drove IH-35 from SAT to DFW back in 2001 and Austin was a shemozzle then! I made a few trips as far south as Round Rock beginning in 2014 and that was good enough for me.Louie wrote: Sun Oct 16, 2022 2:03 pm IMO this kind of growth is unhealthy for a city’s character as well as its infrastructure.
Ive been there about a dozen times as my brother lived there for about a decade. My take (and his as well), is that when a city grows at that speed and creates building demand that can’t be kept up, you have problems. There are dozens of stories of popular restaurants or bars folding under the immense rent hikes.damonhynes wrote: Tue Oct 18, 2022 12:02 am1. I agree wholeheartedly about the infrastructure, as far as the highway system goes. I first drove IH-35 from SAT to DFW back in 2001 and Austin was a shemozzle then! I made a few trips as far south as Round Rock beginning in 2014 and that was good enough for me.Louie wrote: Sun Oct 16, 2022 2:03 pm IMO this kind of growth is unhealthy for a city’s character as well as its infrastructure.
2. But in terms of 'character', I'm weary and leery of self-appointed arbiters of taste pronouncing their standards of a community's character. Worse, when they get in positions of power and foist them on the taypayers. Are you focused on zoning free-for-alls? Gentrification? Or more toward aesthetics? (I do know in Houston that there are no zoning restrictions whatsoever, but I think that's the least of their problems.)
Home prices and rents in Austin are reaching or exceeding NYC levels. I do get certain degrees about concern of character as well. If Blackstone suddenly became so popular it got replaced by a series of glass high rises it wouldn’t necessarily be Blackstone anymore. That’s what’s happening in parts of Austin.damonhynes wrote: Tue Oct 18, 2022 12:02 am1. I agree wholeheartedly about the infrastructure, as far as the highway system goes. I first drove IH-35 from SAT to DFW back in 2001 and Austin was a shemozzle then! I made a few trips as far south as Round Rock beginning in 2014 and that was good enough for me.Louie wrote: Sun Oct 16, 2022 2:03 pm IMO this kind of growth is unhealthy for a city’s character as well as its infrastructure.
2. But in terms of 'character', I'm weary and leery of self-appointed arbiters of taste pronouncing their standards of a community's character. Worse, when they get in positions of power and foist them on the taypayers. Are you focused on zoning free-for-alls? Gentrification? Or more toward aesthetics? (I do know in Houston that there are no zoning restrictions whatsoever, but I think that's the least of their problems.)
The comments section of the article is full of people saying the same. Pretty lazy of the author to not fact check her statement.Garrett wrote: Fri Nov 25, 2022 4:41 am That article makes the claim it will be the tallest in the US outside of NYC, but Chicago, LA, Philadelphia and SF all have buildings taller than 315 meters, so I'm not sure how they're even remotely claiming that.
Wow even Austin has setbacks with skyscrapers. Wonder if it has something to do with the housing market slowing down.Flyer14 wrote: Tue Apr 25, 2023 4:33 am https://www.kvue.com/article/money/econ ... e22f89cae9
This is quite the change of plans, like nothing I've ever heard
It sounded like an issue with Austin's design standards as well.Cermak wrote: Tue Apr 25, 2023 1:51 pmWow even Austin has setbacks with skyscrapers. Wonder if it has something to do with the housing market slowing down.Flyer14 wrote: Tue Apr 25, 2023 4:33 am https://www.kvue.com/article/money/econ ... e22f89cae9
This is quite the change of plans, like nothing I've ever heard
Another article I saw indicated that the owner of the development company implied that he is over-leveraged and was too ambitious.Louie wrote: Tue Apr 25, 2023 1:58 pmIt sounded like an issue with Austin's design standards as well.Cermak wrote: Tue Apr 25, 2023 1:51 pmWow even Austin has setbacks with skyscrapers. Wonder if it has something to do with the housing market slowing down.Flyer14 wrote: Tue Apr 25, 2023 4:33 am https://www.kvue.com/article/money/econ ... e22f89cae9
This is quite the change of plans, like nothing I've ever heard
A sad twist. Austin is doing a lot right, but is still doing some weird things that will hold it back.almighty_tuna wrote: Tue Apr 25, 2023 2:52 pm Yeah, the developer wanted tall and skinny, Austin design standards demanded a larger footprint to height ratio, developer couldn't afford the larger footprint at the original height so lower it went.
I actually dislike a lot about what Austin has been doing. It's growing too fast to keep the culture that attracted people to it. I know this sounds like an old man yelling at the wind, but I watched it change over the 10 years my brother lived there and it was kind of depressing. A small fraction of the original local spots remain independent.Athomsfere wrote: Wed May 03, 2023 11:55 amA sad twist. Austin is doing a lot right, but is still doing some weird things that will hold it back.almighty_tuna wrote: Tue Apr 25, 2023 2:52 pm Yeah, the developer wanted tall and skinny, Austin design standards demanded a larger footprint to height ratio, developer couldn't afford the larger footprint at the original height so lower it went.
I grew up there! Austin in the 90's!Louie wrote: Wed May 03, 2023 6:23 pmI actually dislike a lot about what Austin has been doing. It's growing too fast to keep the culture that attracted people to it. I know this sounds like an old man yelling at the wind, but I watched it change over the 10 years my brother lived there and it was kind of depressing. A small fraction of the original local spots remain independent.Athomsfere wrote: Wed May 03, 2023 11:55 amA sad twist. Austin is doing a lot right, but is still doing some weird things that will hold it back.almighty_tuna wrote: Tue Apr 25, 2023 2:52 pm Yeah, the developer wanted tall and skinny, Austin design standards demanded a larger footprint to height ratio, developer couldn't afford the larger footprint at the original height so lower it went.
I agree with your assessment..Athomsfere wrote: Wed May 03, 2023 7:47 pmI grew up there! Austin in the 90's!Louie wrote: Wed May 03, 2023 6:23 pmI actually dislike a lot about what Austin has been doing. It's growing too fast to keep the culture that attracted people to it. I know this sounds like an old man yelling at the wind, but I watched it change over the 10 years my brother lived there and it was kind of depressing. A small fraction of the original local spots remain independent.Athomsfere wrote: Wed May 03, 2023 11:55 amA sad twist. Austin is doing a lot right, but is still doing some weird things that will hold it back.almighty_tuna wrote: Tue Apr 25, 2023 2:52 pm Yeah, the developer wanted tall and skinny, Austin design standards demanded a larger footprint to height ratio, developer couldn't afford the larger footprint at the original height so lower it went.
Man it's changed. The sad thing is that they are still fighting transit too. It's why it's my often used cautionary tale for Omaha. Omaha feels like Austin in the late 90's / early 00s.
What I like: Austin has actively encourage downtown growth. But not enough to keep housing prices down.
This as an example: Who cares about floor to height ratios. Just split the lot and build something else like a 10 story rental property next to it, or green space. Or a LRT station...