919 Travis Mixed-Use
919 Travis is a newly finished mixed-use building on the Near Southside. It’s one of the earliest results of the Near Southside’s new award-winning form-based zoning code. Most everything in the Near Southside is zoned either T4 or T5, which indicate things like maximum setback, minimum and maximum heights, and so forth. There is a qualifier on some T4 zones, though – the “-N” qualifier, which indicates “neighborhood” zoning. A T4-N zone prevents single-use non-residential. It’s an important part of keeping the district from becoming entirely, say, medical office space. Another T4-N zone that everybody ought to be familiar with is the area centered on Oleander Walk – development there shows the T4-N zoning at work, in the form of all-residential developments like Texana Townhomes and Oleander Place or residential-including mixed-use like the in-progress Frank Building at Henderson & Oleander.
919 Travis is located in a T4-N zone, and as a result it is a medical office on the first floor and an apartment of around 1,200 square feet on the second floor. It was developed by Moss & Jordan Associates and designed by Terry R. Cunningham Architects.
It’s a good example of the kind of small-scaled infill that will slowly but steadily bring life back to the Near Southside, as it approaches a “critical mass” of development that would lead to larger-scaled projects.
It was interesting to check out the architect’s web site. The firm has extensive experience designing conventional suburban garden offices, strip retail centers, and large suburban churches. This project was apparently way outside its typical area of expertise.
In my opinion, they were successful in conforming to the design guidelines (oriented close to street, sufficient windows at the ground level, parking in the rear), however the design is uninspiring at best. The metal awnings look awkwardly large and clunky and the eaves appear too large and appear to be made of foam. This building is a vast improvement over the garden office buildings this developer has constructed in the neighborhood, and they should be commended for their progress. I hope their improvement continues and I think they might benefit from working with an architect with more urban experience.