Town Lake Park Events Center
Summary
In November 1998, Austin voters approved two bond election items for work in the Town Lake Park area. One was to allow the City to lease and convert Palmer Auditorium into the new Long Performing Arts Center and the other was to create the new Events Center. This new Events Center is intended to accommodate some of the events that are displaced by the conversion of Palmer Auditorium and removal of the Coliseum. Once the new Events Center is completed in 2002, the private sector, non profit group, Arts Center Stage will assume control of Palmer Auditorium for conversion into a Performing Arts Center.
Status
Bid Package 1, providing for the removal of the Riverside Center building at 901 W. Riverside Dr., was substantially completed July 6th 2000. Bid Package 2 construction has been initiated. This scope of construction work includes relocation of some existing utilities and placement of new as well as the placement of 366 drilled piers that will become the foundation for the new Events Center and Parking Facility.
Issues
Construction progress and schedule are issues.
Description
Guided by the general public, stakeholders and a Park Master Planning process, the new Events Center was placed in the park. The new Events Center will be approximately 130,000 SF and have a 70,000 SF exhibit area capable of subdivision into two simultaneous events. The facility will have two major entrances to serve each simultaneous event. One from the north off Riverside Dr. and the other from the south off Barton Springs Rd. The new Community Events Center is a smaller events type of facility that caters to local public events that are not large enough to be accommodated at the existing Convention Center. In addition there will be a series of meeting rooms of approximately 7000 SF used by smaller groups for meeting purposes. A 1200 automobile parking facility will be constructed for this site within the same time frame as the new Events Center. The parking facility will be an elongated structure curving along the south side of Palmer Auditorium from the east and terminating into the new Events Center over where Bouldin Ave currently sits. Entrances to the new garage will be on both ends. The western end access will be from Barton Springs Rd. and the eastern entrance will be off Riverside Dr. This new parking facility will also serve as screening to the service yards of both the new Events Center and the converted Palmer Auditorium. The parking demand for the two facilities is in excess of the 1200 spaces to be provided in the garage and consequently the City has obligated portions of the One Texas Center and Town Lake Center garages for after hours use.
Basic Data
Project Contact: Robert A. Holland, AIA, 404-4191
Project Manager: same as contact
Estimated/Actual Construction Start Date: July 2000 start utilities and foundation work. November 2000 start main building contract
Estimated Completion Date: May 2002
Amount Appropriated: $40,000,000
Estimated Construction Cost: $36,000,000 for all bid packages
Revised July 18, 2000
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