Waterline in Austin. Credit: WAX.
The publication recently sat down with KPF Director Andrew Klare to discuss the project, which will be the tallest building in Texas upon completion.
The building’s layered program drives its supertall status, which includes office space, a 251-room hotel, residential units, parking, and public areas at the base across the 3.25-acre site.
KPF’s design team took inspiration from Waterline’s natural surroundings, using the gentle curve of Waller Creek to inform the design of the western elevation. While the project is a high-tech engineering feat, Design Director Andrew Klare told ENR that it is truly “grounded in reality.”
ENR recounted Andrew’s conversation with trade journal Bluebeam, highlighting the positive environmental impact the building will have on Austin’s greenspaces, and the firm’s utilization of environmental experts to align with the area’s conservation goals.
“…Waterline seamlessly integrated nature and architecture at the project’s site, taking the utmost care and sensitivity when it came to environment at the creek and Lady Bird Lake,” he said.
Waterline enhances outdoor activities to the city, extending public walkways from the adjacent park into the tower’s multi-level ground plane. Additionally, two new pedestrian bridges, bike and vehicular access points, and a future light rail station will connect the project to the wider city.
Read the full story from Engineering News Record here.