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Preservation

Council sacrifices Old West Austin building for park improvements

A fourplex in Old West Austin is likely to be demolished despite a push by Mayor Pro Tem Kathie Tovo to save it in the name of historic preservation. A resolution put forward by Tovo to initiate historic zoning on…

Council debates building demolition in Old West Austin

City Council delayed a decision on a contentious historic preservation case Thursday after a property owner promised that he would not seek a permit to tear down the structure in the next week. Zach Armstrong, who is seeking to demolish…

West Line bungalow to be demolished

After almost half-a-dozen trips to the Historic Landmark Commission, an Old West Austin house is officially beyond repair. The 1915 bungalow, which is located at 812 Theresa Ave., was known as the Anderson-Wattinger-Sucke-Naishtat House at the most recent meeting of…

Proposal would revamp historic commission rules

Recent events at the Historic Landmark Commission – which resulted in the panel’s failure to act either to begin the historic zoning process for a property or to allow a demolition permit to move forward – have highlighted a need…

Something ventured, 'nothing' gained at historic commission

At their most recent meeting, Historic Landmark commissioners “accomplished nothing” for a 1932 fourplex known as the Palma Plaza Apartment House. With only seven members present, commissioners were unable to garner an effective number of votes to move forward with…

Neon wrong kind of historic for Congress Avenue

At the most recent Historic Landmark Commission meeting, commissioners faced the question of when “historic” was, exactly. One of Austin’s most celebrated new restaurants provoked the question, by proposing installation of a sign that the owners said was historic, though…

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Proposed preservation district hits a wall at Landmark Commission

The Historic Landmark Commission on Tuesday postponed action on recommending a historical district in Central Austin that scored significant support from its resident homeowners. The punt came at the end of a lengthy and contentious discussion among the commissioners, the…

West Line historic zoning battle extended once again

In a somewhat surprising turn of events, a lack of consensus over a West Line home kicked off the historic zoning process at the Historic Landmark Commission’s most recent meeting. The owner of a 1915 bungalow at 812 Theresa Ave.…

New East Austin survey tells story of loss

To the uninformed, Shonda Mace looked like she was being a real creep. On a morning last March, the young woman loitered in front of a home on East 22nd Street. She eyed the house in front of her before…

East Austin demolition pause raises questions at Historic Landmark Commission

The Historic Landmark Commission started off with a bang Monday night, when an unorthodox postponement of a group of East Austin demolitions put some commissioners on the defensive, left staff confused and sparked a shouting match in City Council chambers.…

New balcony approved for Ma and Pa Ferguson house

Though it took a reluctant Historic Landmark Commission two votes to approve it last month, the Ma and Pa Ferguson House gets to have a nonhistoric balcony. Again. The home at 1200 Enfield Road was once home to Ma and…

'Battle of the historic restoration titans' continues at Landmark Commission

There are plenty of heavy hitters on either side of the debate surrounding a proposed demolition of a contributing structure in the West Line National Register Historic District. What the debate lacks is a resolution, after the Historic Landmark Commission…

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