Tag Archives: Hatch Ulland Owen

Last week the City of Austin announced their selection of the Urban Design Group and team, including h+uo architects to develop a master plan for Colony Park. The fascinating part of the design selection process is that the city had to choose between two incredibly qualified planning teams, McCann Adams Studio and team and the Urban Design Group and team. The staff, council, and outspoken neighborhood joined forces to make a very difficult decision between these two extremely talented teams. The Urban Design Group team is really excited about being selected for this unique project that will transform northeast Austin!

Located in East Austin, east of U.S. Highway 183, the Urban Design Group will develop a plan to develop the vacant 208 acre lot into a master planned community. The city’s vision is to create a community that is not only environmentally sustainable, but also sustainable as a community, without displacing lower-income residents.

Forty percent of the 500 single-family units and 250 multifamily rental units will be affordable housing. h+uo architects will be the key player in designing and ensuring Colony Park’s affordability. Master planning design and neighborhood meetings are expected to begin in September 2013.

Tom Hatch speaking to SABIT business leaders

Business leaders of the 2012 SABIT Energy Efficiency and Renewables in Construction program made a special visit to Austin to see the new M-Station late last year. The goal of their visit was to promote the application of energy efficient principles and technologies in the construction industry in their home countries. The visit included a Q& A session with our Senior Partner, Tom Hatch, and a tour of the M-Station community.

With the help of a translator, the SABIT group inquired about the logistics and funding of the project. They were fascinated by the concept of a “nonprofit”– an organization model that is non-existent in their home countries. The leaders were very excited and enthusiastic about the project.

About M Station
M Station, a Foundation Communities Project, is a 150-unit affordable apartment community for working families in east Austin. This oblong 8.5 acre piece of land is long and narrow as it is located between a creek on the east and the Capital Metro light rail on the west. A green-built model of eco-friendly, transit-oriented development and affordable housing, M Station includes a childcare center, a Community Learning center with after-school programs and a computer lab open to the neighborhood. Residents also benefit from easy access to the MetroRail transit station, a great neighborhood school just a few blocks away, and the Children’s Museum Workshop and the Sustainable Food Center Kitchen and Gardens being built across the street. M Station is the first affordable multifamily community located in the MLK transit-oriented district (TOD), the first LEED for Homes multifamily project in Austin, and the first multifamily LEED for Homes Platinum community in Texas.

About SABIT Program
The SABIT Program facilitates numerous professional relationships between economic decision-makers from both the U.S. and Eurasia. SABIT is a division of the Department of Commerce Market Access and Compliance unit. To learn more about their organization, click here.

Saturday, November 10th, Barkitecture took over the 2nd St. District as people walked the gallery of dog houses along the street. A project of Animal Lovers of Austin, Inc., Barkitecture brings together the city’s best architects and designers to create one of a kind dog houses. These works of art are then sold via silent auction during the event. Proceeds from the event benefit local dog rescue organizations.
h+uo has entered the competition a few times over the years. This year, the idea behind the design was to take the traditional dog house shape and envelope it with a modern and sustainable exterior. The traditional dog house shape can be seen as the “negative” or inside border of the framing. Salvaged Ipe wood (provided by Franklin Alan) was used for the base and as the securing mechanism for the plastic covering. Ipe, which is a very hard wood, required pre-drilling for all screws. The material used for the roofing/wall material is Polygal (purchased at regal Plastics). This material was a bit of a challenge to work with as its rigid nature made bending the materials around the arc of the framing fairly difficult. With a little team work. we were able to fasten it down. We’re pretty thrilled with the result! Special thanks to Bravo Interior Design for their input on the design!

Also of interest! – This year, our design was featured on houzz.com! Click here to read the full article and to see images of other dog house designs that made a splash at this year’s event.

FROM DESIGN TO THE STREET!