14-Acre Mixed-Use Development Opens a New Gateway to Buffalo Bayou Park — the Autry Park Plans
Trying to Create an Urban Village With Major Design Clout
BY Shelby HodgeAutry Park will include 1,450 residential units, 350,000 square-feet of Class A office space, and 100,000 square-feet of select retail, developed by Hanover Company and Lionstone Investments. (Courtesy rendering)
Forces behind the 14-acre mixed-use development project going up between Allen Parkway and West Gray are revealing the official launch of Autry Park, a vast walkable development embracing the concept of an integrated urban lifestyle. Think an urban village replete with requisite amenities and a central green space approached by a winding network of streets and sidewalks shaded by mature live oaks.
The announcement was made by Rebees, which calls itself a Dallas-based “place creation company,” which is working with Lionstone Investments and Hanover Company on the retail aspect of those two firms’ mega development.
The three-phase masterplan includes five towers encompassing 1,450 residential units, 350,000 square-feet of Class A office space, and 100,000 square-feet of select retail, encircling the central green space. Phase 1 of the project, two luxury multi-family and retail buildings by Hanover Company totaling 750 residential units, is expected to be completed fall of 2021.
The project will bring a new lighted intersection on Allen Parkway at the primary entrance to the development via a new street called Buffalo Park Drive. Enhanced pedestrian crosswalks and traffic signals at Allen Parkway and Shepherd Drive and a dedicated bike lane along West Dallas are expected to provide safer pedestrian and bike access into and around Buffalo Bayou Park.
In the process preceding construction, Hanover and Lionstone worked with the City of Houston and Memorial-Heights TIRZ 5 to make significant infrastructure improvements to the streets and public spaces surrounding the development including the gateway approach to Buffalo Bayou Park.
“With a 14-acre blank slate, we saw an opportunity to ‘re-mix’ the concept of mixed-use by creating great spaces that integrate entertainment, technology and wellness in a way that meets the needs of today’s workers, residents, shoppers, and visitors,” Lionstone CEO Jane Page says in a statement. “Sustainable and healthier spaces can result in more productive people, and Autry Park combines best-in-class real estate in a walkable environment with access to the relaxation and outdoor activities afforded by the park.”
“All of us at Buffalo Bayou Partnership are looking forward to the opening of Autry Park,” Anne Olson, president of Buffalo Bayou Partnership, says in a statement. “The Hanover Company is one of our nation’s premier developers and this project is guaranteed to be spectacular. We’ve been very impressed at Hanover and Lionstone’s commitment to seamlessly blend their project in with the landscape of Buffalo Bayou Park. And we’re very excited about the planned pedestrian connections that will provide much needed safety for park users and residents of Autry Park.”
The heavy-hitter design team behind the development includes project designers and consultants Ziegler-Cooper Architects, W Partnership, Design Collective Inc., FÖDA, and walkability expert Jeff Speck.
Michael Hsu Office of Architecture, based in both Austin and Houston, has been enlisted to create the architectural identity for Autry Park’s retail spaces as well as architectural features of its central public park. Landscape architect OJB (Office of James Burnett) has created a design that emphasizes the pedestrian experience of the development, drawing the natural landscape of Buffalo Bayou Park into Autry Park’s streets and sidewalks.