Plans for a massive East Riverside mixed-use development have recently changed to include even more acreage, making it twice the size of The Domain.
The land approved for the project is directly east of Oracle’s new Austin Headquarters and is bordered by Roy G. Guerrero Colorado River Metro Park, East Riverside Drive, Pleasant Valley Road, and Country Club Creek.
The project, named River Park, will span 109 acres and include 4700 housing units, several million square feet of office space, hundreds of hotel rooms, 30 acres of public green space, and areas for retail, restaurants, and entertainment. It will be built in phases over the span of 10-20 years and will cost around $4 billion. It will include 400 low-income apartments, affordable for Austin residents earning 60% of the city’s median-family income.
The development has faced public backlash since its proposal in 2019, when organizations in the community spoke out about the repercussions of the clearing of affordable housing that the project would require, as well as the effects of further gentrification in East Austin. City council members ultimately reached a compromise with the developers, Texas-based real estate investment firm Presidium and Swiss private equity firm Partners Group, who agreed to immediately house 100 homeless individuals for up to 5 years and to fund $1.75 million to in-home health care and social workers for those residents, via Austin-based organization Ending Community Homelessness Coalition.
While River Park is sure to transform the East Riverside community over the next few decades, we are hopeful that this development will be full of positive outcomes and a catalyst for new growth and opportunity in one of Austin’s most historic and celebrated neighborhoods.
Image Courtesy Rendering