Demolition crews start taking apart Austin Convention Center

AUSTIN, Texas - Work has started to take apart the Austin Convention Center and build a new one.

The new convention center will be completed in 2029.

Austin Convention Center expansion

The backstory:

Crews are starting with the interior.

"It's a surgical demo. No explosion, nothing like that, nothing exciting, but we'll take it down in a very controlled manner over the next few months," Graham Dewar, general manager for the Austin office of Turner Construction, said.

Some of the materials will go into the new convention center. Next month, the exterior will start to be taken apart.

"The building will be demoed kind of in a clockwise fashion around the site," Riley Triggs, capital delivery consultant for the City of Austin said. "Following right behind it, there's going be a process that lays in a diaphragm wall that will act as shoring, water protection, and ultimately foundation for the new building."

That process will take about a year. Then after, there will be a 10-month excavation to put in foundations and steel. 

Dig deeper:

The $1.6 billion project is paid for through hotel occupancy tax and convention center revenue. It will nearly double the size of the current one, from 365,000 square feet to 620,000 square feet and have indoor-outdoor connections.

The city projects $750 million in annual economic impact.

"By doubling the size of the Convention Center, we will now be able to bring more events, larger events that will continue to build that economic impact throughout the tourism industry," Trisha Tatro, director of the Austin Convention Center Department, said. 

The other side:

However, some question the need for a new one.

"I think it's just fine the way it is. I've visited here multiple times over the years, and it seems to be big enough, and it's already tight on space here anyways," Joe Hartley, a visitor from Houston said.

The original convention center opened in 1992. Ten years after that, it doubled in size, and a hotel was added next door.

Mayor Kirk Watson admits this is a bit of déjà vu.

"This reminds me very much of my granddaughter...who recently took Legos and built a beautiful whatever it was, and I told her it was beautiful, and then she immediately destroyed it. I kind of feel like that's what I'm -- I remember trying to double the size of this convention center, and now we're going to knock it down," he said.

Artwork controversy

What they're saying:

There was also controversy over artwork that was still in the convention center. The city reached agreements with three of the four artists, according to a city memo.

RELATED: Austin artists fight to keep iconic art pieces at convention center

The city memo reads in part:

"Waller Creek Shelves by Damian Priour will be removed from the Austin Convention Center next week but will remain in the City of Austin’s Art in Public Places (AIPP) collection. It will be relocated to the Austin Public Library, where it will remain publicly accessible. 

Macro/Micro by Rolando Briseño will also stay in the AIPP collection. A digital re-creation is being developed, and plans are in progress for a future relocation. 

Riffs & Rhythms by John Yancey is being carefully removed from the Austin Convention Center this week through a collaboration partnership. Once removed, ownership of the piece will transfer to Mr. Yancey. Discussions are underway regarding a potential reinstallation in East Austin’s historic African American Heritage Cultural District. 

Index for Contemplation by Margo Sawyer has been removed by the artist in accordance with the existing contractual agreement. We remain optimistic that a resolution will be reached to ensure this work remains publicly accessible. It has always been our desire to retain all of this work. We are actively exploring options to retain a portion or all of the work as a legacy installation within the newly redeveloped Convention Center. Ultimately, we respect the artist’s decision should she choose to reclaim it."

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