Downtown

July 1996

• Congress Avenue Street Reconstruction and Overlay
  Paving from César Chávez to 11th St. and reconstruction of the block from 10th St. to 11th St. is underway.

• Downtown Art Museum
  On June 6 the Austin City Council approved a contract with the Austin Museum of Art, Inc., to develop, manage and operate a long-awaited downtown art museum.

  The Council also approved a contract not to exceed $300,000 with Venturi, Scott Brown and Associates, Inc., of Philadelphia to update the design of the museum to account for changes in code requirements, location and costs since the original design by acclaimed architect Robert Venturi was obtained by the City in 1989. Additionally, the contract calls for Venturi to develop a series of design options with a range of associated construction costs.

• Downtown Development Initiatives
  At the July 17 worksession Gerald Trimble of Keyser Marston Associates will brief the City Council on the current progress of the proposed Tax Increment Finance District reinvestment zone for downtown Austin and the downtown development corporation.

• Downtown Mobility Action Plan (DMAP)

• Downtown Noontime Concerts
  The Fall 1996 season will resume September 3, the Tuesday following Labor Day.

• Downtown Parking Plan
  Award of the RFP is anticipated in October 1996. The conversion to electronic meters will be over a two to three year plan. The first phase of installation is expected to be complete by December 1996. The ordinance amendments required to implement the plan will be completed by November 1996.

• First Tuesday Downtown
  This Downtown Ausatin Alliance program is a monthly "evening on the downtown" showcasing Austin's unique, diverse, creative and thriving Downtown neighborhood, as well as bring families, students, seniors, and singles Downtown, where they may stroll from theaters to art exhibits in large buildings, hotel lobbies, and galleries, and into businesses, retail and gift shops, and restaurants along the way. First Tuesday Downtown will be held the first Tuesday of each month from 5:00--9:00 p.m., beginning in July 2,1996.

• Great Streets Program
  Funding for the Driskill corner in now complete. The Alliance is working with the Department of Public Works and Transportation and the Driskill on the design of the project. Holly To Seaholm Transmission Line Construction work on the new transmission line is complete. Removal of the existing lines and poles along Holly Street is complete. Removal work on the existing line in the Rainey Street area is underway and is scheduled to be completed by June 28, 1996. Some restoration and landscape work has been completed; however, a significant amount of additional landscaping and other mitigation improvements are being planned. Estimated completion is fall, 1996.

• Lamar Boulevard Bridge
  The public input phase is planned to begin in summer 1996.

• O. Henry Museum Preservation Plan
  Five sets of new shutters were installed by the general contractor on the house on June 14. All five sets were rejected because they did not match the existing historical shutters. Surety must provide shutters that match the existing historical shutters.

• Scattered Cooperative Infill Housing Program (SCIP 2)
  It is anticipated that Anderson Community Development Corporation (ACDC) will submit another application to the State for the Scattered Cooperative Infill Housing Program (SCIP) 2 project in August or September, 1996.

• Shoal Creek Flood Repair
  Construction is underway; the project is 99% complete. Completion is expected in June 1996.

• South 1st Street
  The project was substantially complete on May 7, 1996.