Austin unveils design for $1.26 billion convention center expansion, pledges net‑zero carbon goal

The Austin City Council on Feb. 25 heard a public unveiling of the design for the new Austin Convention Center and a review of schedule, budget and sustainability goals.

Tricia Tetreault, director of the Austin Convention Center Department, introduced the project and described it as the culmination of a decade of planning. "Today is an important day, not only for our department, but for the community at large, and marks a huge milestone in our 10 year journey to expansion," Tetreault said.

The project team said the expansion carries a construction budget of $1,260,000,000 and will increase rentable square footage from about 365,000 square feet to 620,000 square feet, with space reserved to add an additional 40,000 square feet later. The city plans to close the current facility in April for demolition, begin construction through 2028 and reopen in spring 2029.

Why it matters: City staff said proceeds from hotel occupancy taxes and convention center revenues will fund the work. The redesign is intended to expand Austin's ability to host larger and multiple concurrent events, bolster the hospitality and tourism sectors and knit the eastern edge of downtown into surrounding districts, speakers said.

The architects and project staff described several prominent elements of the design: a fragmented, block‑scale building with two large outdoor park blocks; an indoor‑outdoor paseo along Second Street; a central arrival lobby and a ravine feature that connects multiple levels and leads down to an exhibit hall; below‑grade loading docks; and multiple street‑level meeting rooms and retail spaces intended for both convention use and public access.

Sustainability and materials: The project team described an ambitious sustainability goal. "We have established a standard that this would be the first net 0 carbon convention center in the world," said Mark Reddington of LMM (Seattle), noting work with the International Living Futures Institute on certification strategies. Designers said the plan uses mass timber roof structures, targets low‑carbon concrete, and will harvest and reuse elements of the existing building where feasible — including trusses, metal panels and shade elements — to reduce embodied carbon. Project staff said some reuse will increase up‑front cost but will be paid for from a designated 0‑net‑carbon budget.

Public art and public access: The council was told the project includes a $17,700,000 public art program — the largest public‑art investment in Austin to date — and the selection of 10 artists. Seven artworks will be outdoors and open to the public. Staff described a community room on the Paseo that city residents and nonprofits can rent, and multiple ground‑floor restaurants and open spaces intended for everyday use when conventions are not in session.

Council questions and staff responses: Council members pressed for more financial and technical detail. Council member Duchin said financial materials requested weeks earlier had not been delivered and asked for a timeline for outstanding numbers and pro formas. Riley Triggs, project manager for the city, said environmental and geotechnical studies have been completed and that staff would provide those materials where not proprietary: "We've done all of the usual and required environmental impact assessments on the property. We've done geotech reports," Triggs said.

Several council members praised design choices intended to improve downtown connectivity, bicycle and transit access and to avoid a single "big box" massing. Council member Rales said the plan addresses pedestrian and bike connectivity and makes the site more porous. Council member Lane asked staff to pursue express bus service to link outlying districts to downtown. Staff said they are coordinating with Austin Transit Partnership on station placement and with Transportation and Public Works on bike lanes and loading provisions.

Operational design details: Staff said loading docks will be below grade adjacent to the exhibit hall, reducing street‑level freight activity. Staff also said they are developing a booking policy that will include a nonprofit rental rate and that many of the building's meeting rooms and outdoor spaces can be rented by the community when not in use by conventions.

Public comments and criticism: During the public comment period, longtime District 5 resident Bill Bunch criticized the project for lack of transparency, questioned the net‑zero claim and asked council to "slow down a bit" before committing city funds. "There's no disclosure," Bunch said, asking for more details on total costs and contingencies. Another commenter, Ryan Saunders, urged council to consider broader quality‑of‑life issues and said he feared new regulations could be used to punish lawful short‑term rental operators.

Next steps: Staff said demolition will begin in May after the facility closes in April and that construction will proceed into 2028. Council members asked staff to provide outstanding financial analysis, environmental documents and the HVS/HBS economic impact materials discussed earlier. "That concludes the presentation for today, and we're happy to take any questions or comments you might have," Tetreault said at the close of the briefing.

The council took no vote on the project design during the Feb. 25 work session and moved on to other agenda items after the briefing.