1. Downtown: Austin’s Economic Driver
Charlie Betts
September 25, 2014

2. Downtown Austin Alliance
PID formed in 1993 to address the unique needs of Downtown Austin
Focus Areas:
Clean and Safe
Transportation and Great Streets
Parks and Green Spaces
Retail Recruitment
Economic Development
Culture, Arts and Entertainment
Mission: To preserve and enhance the value and vitality of downtown Austin

3. PUBLIC IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT BOUNDARIES
DOWNTOWN AUSTIN
PUBLIC IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT BOUNDARIES

4. Downtown Snapshot 8,500,000 square feet of office space
123,178 daytime employees
10,000 residents
6,400 hotel rooms
2,002 hotel rooms under construction
Photo by Dan Herron

5. Everyone Has a Stake in Downtown
Downtown is the economic engine of Austin.
Value of downtown acre 28 times more potent than city & 80 times more potent than county.
An economically healthy downtown benefits all Austin citizens.
Downtown’s taxable value represents about 8% of the City’s tax base*
An area twelve times larger than downtown is needed to generate the same average taxable value*
*Source: Travis Central Appraisal District, Downtown Austin Alliance, December 2011
*Sources: Urban3, Travis Central Appraisal District; 2013

6. Apartments Recently Completed
Ashton
258 apartments
Completed 2009
Gables Park Plaza
290 apartments
Completed 2010
Whitley
266 apartments
Completed 2013
Coming Soon
Gables Park Tower (185 Units)
Capital Studios (135 units)
3 Eleven Bowie (358 units)
Austin Skyhouse (320 units)

7. Downtown APARTMENT Market
650 apartment units currently under construction
2,819 apartment units built since 2000
Average price per square foot is $2.41 – roughly twice citywide average
Downtown apartment occupancy is 89.1%
Source: Capitol Market Research, June 2014

8. Downtown Condominiums Recently Completed
Austonian
178 condo units
Completion 2010
Four Seasons Residences
148 condo units
Completion 2010
Spring
247 condo units
Completion August 2009
W Hotel & Residences
159 condo units
Completion 2011
*Coming 2015: Seaholm Residences Condos, all reserved

9. Downtown Condominium Market
2,479 condominium units built downtown since the year 2000
98% of the recently completed or units under construction have been sold
Average price per square foot is $556
Average unit size 1,465 SF
Source: Capitol Market Research, June 2014

10. Downtown Visitors 6,400 hotel rooms downtown
2,002 hotel rooms under construction in downtown
Downtown hotel occupancy rates 80.7% (YTD through June 2014)
$4.5 billion in economic impact generated by visitor spending in Austin
$ Average Daily Rate Citywide is $
Source: Austin Convention & Visitors Bureau

11. Ongoing Investments in the Tourism Industry
1015-room JW Marriott broke ground October 2012
Hampton Inn University/Capitol opened October 2012
Hyatt Place opened
Four Seasons: $16 m renovations
Hampton Inn: $1 m renovation
Hilton Austin: 2008 $4 m for upgrades to rooms and Finn & Porter restaurant; $2 m budgeted for more renovations this year
Hilton Garden Inn: $4 m renovation
Hyatt Regency: $24 m over the last 3 years
Omni: $10 m in ongoing makeover
Sheraton: $15 m renovation
W Hotel: 250-room hotel as part of a $260 m mixed-use development on 2nd Street
JW Marriott – Congress Avenue & 2nd St

12. Downtown Office 8.5M SF of office space 123,178 daytime employees
746,562 SF office space under construction
Average price per square foot: $38.90
90.6% occupancy rate

13. Retail Recruitment Program
Full-Time Retail Recruiter
Geographic focus on Congress Avenue and Historic East Sixth Street
Recruit existing local and regional businesses looking for new or additional locations
Contracted consultants to focus on national tenants and strategy

14. Downtown Austin Plan
Led by McCann Adams Studio with community input and city guidance
Transportation Framework Plan
District Plans
Parks and Open Space Master Plan
Waller Creek Master Plan
Adopted by City Council December 2011
For more information on the Downtown Austin Plan, visit

15. EAST DOWNTOWN: PLANS IN PROGRESS

16. Questions?