East Avenue Mixed-Use Development
Austin, Texas
Urban planning and design strategies are integrated throughout the entire East Avenue master plan, former site of Concordia University. The East Avenue community will be a mixed-use environment combining moderate-income rental housing, condominiums, retail, medical offices, general offices, an Andaz Hotel, entertainment facilities, an urban plaza and a park.
The neighborhood is centered on a lively, pedestrian-oriented street lined with retail that will service, not only East Avenue, but also underserved surrounding neighborhoods. The street is punctuated by two public open spaces—both located to preserve mature existing trees. One is a plaza at the entry to the neighborhood off IH-35 which features two large fountains and a public gathering space. The other is a park which is a more informal social space for dogs, people and occasional music.
The project approach included the goals of reducing pollution, energy consumption, time spent in traffic, and suburban sprawl, while simultaneously creating a sense of community, and increasing the quality of life for residents and visitors. This site is seen as one of the few opportunities to bring more people and activity from the periphery into central Austin without displacing established and healthy single family neighborhoods. Street placement ties into the large oak, pecan, and other trees to create a series of urban pocket parks that preserve trees, natural contours, and provide lush green-space. The mixed uses of the site provide a transition from the low-rise, medium density neighborhoods to the more intense uses of the project while maximizing views across the site. Access to and across the site maximizes pedestrian space and minimizes the use of the car.
Sustainable design features for the development include continuous bioswales as part of the urban streetscape to deal with storm water treatment and more than two acres of green roofs as well as an extremely efficient central energy plant which will provide steam and chilled water for the whole project.