Dirty Martin’s no longer at risk of demolition due to light rail

Iconic Austin restaurant no longer at risk

An iconic Austin burger joint, and other longstanding businesses on The Drag near UT, will be staying put. Their future was threatened by the plan for a light rail that's in the works.

AUSTIN, Texas - Dirty Martin’s has been serving up hundreds of burgers and shakes for almost 100 years, but hitting that century mark was in question for the restaurant, which had been threatened by growing infrastructure.

In 2020, voters approved Project Connect, a $7 billion plan to expand public transportation across the Austin area.

As part of Project Connect, in June 2023, the Austin Transit Partnership adopted an implementation plan for a light rail after hearing from the community.

"And since then, we've been advancing the work to advance design in key areas to define the project's requirements and its footprint," said Lindsay Wood, vice president of engineering and construction for ATP. "And as part of that work, also looking at minimizing our real estate needs for the project to allow us to really maximize the use of our dollars in building the light rail elements versus purchasing land or buildings."

'Dirty Martin's' at risk from Project Connect plans

The iconic burger joint "Dirty Martin's" near UT is in the cross-hairs of Project Connect.

Several multifamily buildings on Riverside Drive, just west of I-35, will no longer be affected, along with businesses along Guadalupe Street between 27th and 29th streets.

"We have a number of businesses that closely line the alignment through there and have identified a solution that would not require us to have conflicts with any of those structures," said Wood.

Along with Dirty Martin’s, some of those businesses include Asian Express, Mighty Mo’s, Arlo’s Curbside, and The Ballroom at Spider House. Here is the list of addresses provided by ATP:

2716 ½ Guadalupe Street
2718 Guadalupe Street
2800 Guadalupe Street
2808 Guadalupe Street
2906 Fruth Street

"I'm cautiously thrilled about this," said Mark Nemir, owner of Dirty Martin’s.

However, Nemir’s concerns over the Project Connect process led to involvement in a lawsuit against the City of Austin last year. Customers coming in and out of Dirty Martin’s will see the original proposal and the current, scaled-down implementation plan for phase one placed side-by-side.

"The voters in 2020 voted for a specific project with a specific route for a specific price. ‘This is what we're going to deliver to you. And in exchange, we're going to raise your taxes 20% forever,’" said Nemir. "And now it's like, 'For the same money, here's what we're actually going to build.'"

Austin taxpayers file lawsuit against City

A legal battle has ensued over recent changes made to the 2020 voter approved Project Connect. Some tax payers accuse city leaders of violating the multi-billion-dollar contract that was agreed upon with Austin residents.

Wood said there is room for expansion down the road once they finalize this initial phase. ATP is currently in the federal funding process which includes an environmental study.

"So that's advancing in the design in a way that helps us fit the project into our human environment, our natural environment, and be mindful of those resources and also be mindful of community feedback and what people cherish about these areas that we are building light rail in, and finding ways to preserve and protect those things that people value," said Wood.

Updated designs along with a draft environmental impact statement are expected to be published sometime later this year.

ATP has scheduled open houses in the coming months and encourages the community to get involved in the process. The full schedule of open houses can be found here.