Mixed-use development Verde Square to bring hotel, office space to site next to Q2 Stadium "An upcoming development in North Austin will deliver apartments, a hotel and hundreds of thousands of square feet of mixed-use space on a site neighboring Q2 Stadium, the home of Austin FC. Austin City Council on Sept. 30 is scheduled to vote on a zoning change request for Verde Square, a multiuse development planned off Burnet Road and located kitty-corner from The Domain." (Iain Oldman, Community Impact)

City Approves Austin City Limits' COVID Safety Plan, Setting Up Final Approval Ahead Of The Festival "Austin City Limits is one step closer to getting the final OK from the city to return to Zilker Park for an in-person festival next week. ... ACL attendees must show proof of vaccination or test negative for COVID-19 no more than three days before going to the festival. Vaccinated fest-goers do not have to get tested ahead of the event, but they will be required to present printed copies of vaccination or negative tests, ACL says." (Andrew Weber, KUT)

Austin Opry House development faces opposition from Planning Commission, neighbors "A mixed-use project seeking to revive historic music venue Austin Opry House ran into concerns Tuesday from the Planning Commission, which voted to postpone the rezoning case by a month to give the applicant, Richard Weiss, more time to work with neighbors worried about traffic and disruption from concertgoers. Plans for the development at 200 Academy Drive – just off South Congress Avenue – include an 800-person concert venue, over 100 housing units and commercial space." (Jonathan Lee, Austin Monitor)

Toxin found at Sculpture Falls in Barton Creek makes water unsafe for swimming, city of Austin says "The water at Sculpture Falls in Barton Creek has been deemed unsafe after a natural toxin that makes humans and animals sick was found in the water, Austin Watershed Protection Department officials said. ... The toxin cylindrospermopsin was detected when officials took samples from the water after receiving a report on Sept. 9 about a person becoming sick after swimming in the area." (Kelsey Bradshaw, Austin American-Statesman)

Luxury mixed-use tower The Linden breaks ground north of Capitol in Central Austin "The Linden, a 28-story residential tower in Austin's Museum District blocks north of the state Capitol, broke ground Sept. 15. ... The Linden will feature a total of 117 one- to three-bedroom units alongside several two-story penthouses. Street-level community amenities are also included in the project plan from architect Rhode Partners, developer Reger Holdings and contractor Bartlett Cocke." (Ben Thompson, CI)

Huge development will unlock more than 1,300 new homes in growing Austin suburb "The swelling Austin suburb of Hutto is about to undergo a hippo-sized growth spurt. On September 16, Scottsdale, Arizona-based homebuilder Taylor Morrison announced a new development in Hutto called Emory Crossing. The 315-acre project, just north of State Highway 130 and U.S. Highway 79, will feature 1,341 single-family homes. Homes are priced from the $330,000s." (John Egan, CultureMap Austin)

Led by Tesla, Austin revs up as a key electric vehicle hub "With an influx of companies making electric cars, semi-trucks, motorcycles and even batteries, the Austin area has quietly become a key hub in the electric vehicle industry — and it's doing so just as EV technology is gaining widespread adoption by consumers, according to industry experts." (Kara Carlson, AAS)

$1B fund aims to make real estate investing more diverse "An Austin-based commercial real estate investment company has launched a $1 billion fund to boost minority investing in real estate. Casoro Group LLC’s Onyx Impact Fund will invest $1 billion over 10 years alongside minority-owned companies, with the intent of amplifying their reach in real estate investments and increasing generational wealth of the families behind those businesses." (Parimal M. Rohit, Austin Business Journal)