Commentary on Cranes and Their Creations
Travel back to the future of Austin, Texas—when the cranes came to build condos.
In 2011, It Became Official: Austin’s Vanishing
Here’s my look back to 2004, when I became smitten with Austin, and soon found it vanishing.
Whitley’s Went. Then Came A Tower.
An 18-story tower arises from a humble print shop in downtown Austin.
Turning Silver at the Saxon
How does a beloved Austin music icon thrive for 25 years in a city on growth steroids?
Back By Popular Demand
Backed by a new band, The Towering Cranes, Austin’s most beloved icon appears daily on the shore of Lady Bird Lake.
Count the Condos and the Cranes
Get a panoramic view of Austin’s condos and cranes by kayak, from the center of Lady Bird Lake.
It’s All About Your Perspective
In Austin, Texas, we take our local landmarks seriously, and our city ordinances decree that new high-rise condos must not exceed the height of our beloved homegrown businesses.
Welcome to Austin. You’re Gonna Love It!
Welcome to Austin, all ye visitors to SXSW. You’re gonna love Austin. We all do. You’re about to find out why Austin, Texas makes every Top Ten list anyone ever thought of.
Austin Is a Town of Continual Juxtaposition
Juxtaposition is Austin’s middle name these days, and figures prominently in my Vanishing Austin series as the most striking way to show our recent urban history.
2013: The Year A Giant Wrecking Ball Ate Austin
It’s time for end-of-year portfolio assessments. First up: the giant wrecking ball that’s been tormenting Austin.
The Pattern of Change Is Change
It takes a whole lotta cranes to hoist up a new Marriott in downtown Austin, where change is changing faster than you can say change. The upcoming architecture at 2nd […]
The Pattern of Change
It takes a whole lotta cranes to hoist up a new Marriott in downtown Austin, where change is changing faster than you can say change. Above, the upcoming architecture at 2nd […]
There Goes the Neighborhood
Lamar Plaza is gone. It’s just a hole in the ground now. Since late 2012, dozens of local businesses vacated a shopping plaza that served as the heart of South […]
Where Oh Where Will The Warehouse Go?
The freight lines brought the low-brick industrial warehouses that once dominated Austin from I-35 to MoPac, and in the early 20th century, the building known locally as the Spaghetti Warehouse was part […]
What kind of city will Austin be?
The question that emerged from the Vanishing Austin interview on KOOP 91.7 FM today was, what kind of city will Austin be? Will we become another Dallas (as some fear); will […]
Jann Alexander :: Pairings 