On April 21, SMPS Austin partnered with AIA Austin for a tour of the recently-opened Austin ISD Performing Arts Center (PAC). Participants got a behind-the-scenes look at the state-of-the-art facilities as well as a presentation hosted by some key members of the project team: Fine Arts Director Greg Goodman of Austin ISD, Juan Miro with Miró Rivera Architects, Sean Connor and Jessica Molter of Pfluger Architects, and Daniel Lind with American Constructors, Inc.

Austin ISD’s new PAC provides the district and community with space for a myriad of performances, events, and conferences. The venue features a 1,200-seat main auditorium, 250-seat black box theatre, dance studio, multi-purpose rehearsal and meeting room, visual arts display, kiln room, recording studio, fine arts library and offices, outdoor amphitheatre, and a 440-space parking garage. The building is projected for LEED Gold certification and a 4-star rating from Austin Energy Green Building.

The design of the PAC, which is centrally located in the Mueller development, is differentiated from similar facilities by its active integration into this urban, pedestrian-oriented zone. The construction of this project helped extend streets and infrastructure to kick off a new phase in the redevelopment of the former airport into a new, mixed-use neighborhood.

As the city's most versatile arts education center, the PAC provides a highly-visible showcase for student performers, with professional level lighting, sound, and recording capabilities. The venue is an apropos setting for promoting Austin ISD's goal to "provide students with the knowledge and skills necessary for cognitive, creative, emotional, and social growth."

Special thanks to all of the event organizers, as well as our event sponsors American Constructors, BAI LLC, Coleman and Associates, Jose I. Guerra Inc, Miller IDS and TriNet. 

View all photos from the event HERE

Register now for next week's Mix & Learn event! Attendees will learn about rum through through a guided tasting at Habana on South Congress and have ample time to network with one another over tasty beverages.

REGISTER

Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF) is a narrow, five-story, 42,000-square-foot, zero lot line expansion project located on historic Congress Avenue near the State Capitol. The original building was constructed in the 19th-century and has since housed a livery stable, a federal courtroom and an opera house.

With Big Red Dog's assistance, demotion permits for the existing structure, which dates back to the late 1800s, were secured. Harvey-Cleary transformed this two-story building into a new six-story structure on one of the busiest streets in downtown Austin. The scope of services for this project included coordination and client representation at the City of Austin’s Historic Landmark Commission.

The feature aspect of this project is the first floor lecture theatre, which will be used for TPPF’s presentations, lectures, and speeches. Other aspects of the building include office space for TPPF, a wraparound porch on the 2nd and 6th floors, and the reuse of removed long-leaf pine joists from the original building to construct the new soffits as well as to build the new boardroom table.

Harvey-Cleary was the general contractor for both the base building and the interior finish-out. BRD was also responsible for coordinating streetscape improvements associated with the City of Austin “Great Streets” program as well as managing the site development and license agreement permitting process. Sixthriver was the architect for the project.

Location: Austin, Texas
Date Completed: March 17, 2015
Type: Historical renovation
Size: 42,000 SF

Owner Rep: American Realty
Owner: Texas Public Policy Foundation
General Contractor: Harvey-Cleary Builder
Architect: Sixthriver Architects
Structural: Cardno Haynes Whaley
MEP: Big Red Dog
Civil: Big Red Dog
Landscape Architect: Design Workshop

Review by Lyndsay Woods, Harvey-Cleary

After four years on the Western Front, Tom Sherbourne returns to Australia and takes a job as a lighthouse keeper on Janus rock. Tom brings his new wife, Isabel, to this isolated island to begin their life together. Years later, after two miscarriages and one still birth, a boat washes up on the island with a dead man and a living baby. Tom and Isabel decide to raise the baby as their own, but the choice has devastated one of them.

M.L. Stedman beautifully portrays these compelling characters as “seeking their North Star in a world where there is not right answer, where justice for one person is another’s tragic loss.” The Light Between Oceans will leave you considering your own moral standing and trying to make sense of the gray area of right and wrong.

Please help us welcome SMPS Austin Chapter's newest members!

Angela Alwin
Specht Harpman

Chris Bodine
Norris Design

Gregory S. Chashen, PE, CPC
Martines Palmeiro Construction

Jeff Eubank
SpawGlass

Christina M. Gonzalez
GarzaBury

Vicki R. McCullough
Sequitur Marketing, LLC

Ashley D. Rust
RVi

Chris Bodine
Managing Principal
Norris Design

Chris Bodine works for Norris Design as the managing principal for Texas operations. Norris is a full-service landscape architecture and planning company headquartered in Denver, with offices in Tucson, Phoenix and Frisco, CO. 

Chris grew up in Denton and has degrees from both the University of North Texas as well as Texas State University. Chris has four children, leaving him little free time, and spends a lot of time at the baseball fields.