Saturday, March 31, 2018

A Weekend in Austin

And An Open Mash Note to Austin's New Library

Roadboy just finished a weekend trip to Austin Texas. Timing was good; nice spring weather and the South by Southwest (SXSW) crowds had all left.

Sadly, in the days before the trip Austin had suffered from a series of random bombings.  As it turned out the psycho bomber self-destructed just before I arrived and city folks were venturing out with confidence again.

I've visited Texas' Music City many times over the years (mainly for work) and admit to having a soft spot for the City and it's boundless energy.

With each visit however, I find Austin a little less "Weird" and a bit more "Manhattan". But, it is still danged cool in my book.

My visit had no particular agenda other than to spend time with a friend, eat some good food, listen to some music (of which there is no shortage in the Capital of Texas) and go visit its new main library.

I met my friend at the larger than life sculpture of US Representative Barbara Jordan (a personal hero). We traveled directly from Bergstrom Airport to a casual dinner under the trees at Austin's hipster Central Market. Dinner was accompanied by some great Cuban inspired band. And, the evening progressed some pretty good dancers (and some energetic tykes) were inspired to avail themselves of the music and the lovely evening.

Saturday the big "A" architect in me opted for visit to Austin's newly opened downtown library. We rode the bus downtown enjoying some spirited conversation with fellow riders excited to offer sightseeing advice.

The New Austin Public Library

Architects are mercilous detail freaks. We scrutinize every detail of any building we visit. Sadly, we usually find more to fault than to admire. 

Well, after a whole lot more time spent poking around this building than I'd planned, I found myself just in awe of this new civic masterpiece by the Joint Venture of Lake Flato and Shepley Bullfinch. This design team just didn't miss much of anything.

The View Through The Central Atrium

The library is filled with art and comfy furnishings for every mood. There is a roof terrace with great views, acoustics are great and finishes are perfect.

Everywhere I looked there were electrical outlets and my phone indicated robust free WiFi from rooftop to the quiet reading rooms.

The Rooftop Terrace

I also offer admiration to the builders. They delivered a level of quality and finesse Austin residents should really be proud of. 

Attention To Detail is Exhibited Everywhere

From what I understand the building suffered from months of delays and a series of budget increases, but the value of the extra time and money is on display for everyone to see; truly a new civic treasure.

New Streetscape, Bridges and Pedestrian Walks Surround the Library


The exhibition galleries (that had a great show featuring Singapore's green / living wall buildings) was very nice and I noted a new cafe is in the works as well.

The Living Wall Sky Garden's Exhibition

Our visit with the library ended and led us to the nearby revamped streamlined deco Seaholm powerstation for a quick lunch and it was off to walk to South Congress.

 Seaholm

From Seaholm our walk intersected with a portion of the 20,000 participating in Austin's March of Our Lives on our way to cross the Congress Bridge.   

The walk included window shopping, some perfect tacos al carbon, street art, people watching and some creative street performers.

Spring inAustin

Energetic Street Performer(s)

Willie!

The trip was a perfect vaccination for the end of winter! 

Keep it weird.  

Roadboy's Travels © 2018

Sunday, March 11, 2018

Frank Lloyd Wright's "Tiny" House

The Seth C. Peterson Cottage 
Mirror Lake Wisconsin

Close your eyes and imagine a tiny cottage perched on the side of a steep woodsy hillside with views of a shimmering lake below.

Mirror Lake

Now open them and find yourself in one of Frank Lloyd Wright's smallest, most intimate creations.

The Seth C. Peterson Cottage

In 1958 Seth Peterson (after numerous attempts) was able to convince Wright to design a small getaway cottage for himself and his future bride. 

Wright completed the commission, but passed away the following year in 1959, before the cottage was complete. 

 The Centerpiece of the Cottage is its Massive Fireplace

This makes the cottage one of Wright's last residences and the last commission in his home state of Wisconsin. Sadly, Peterson also died before his cottage was complete at the age of 24.

The cottage was subsequently purchased and eventually absorbed into Mirror Lake State Park. It fell into severe disrepair. In 1989 the Seth C. Peterson Cottage Conservancy began a complete restoration effort. The restoration was completed in 1992 and the 880 square foot cottage has been self-supporting ever since. It is available for tours, special events and for rent to overnight guests.

Construction is local limestone and pine. Floors are flagstone. Above the expansive windows are additional windows with a pine motif. 

Despite its small size, Wright's traditional "Compression and Relief" design principal (small intimate spaces opening to large spaces) is expressed perfectly.

 

The cottage design is organized around a core that features a large fireplace, compact kitchen and mechanical/utility room. The living room is surprisingly spacious with a built-in sofa (with hideaway bed). There is one bedroom that is afforded privacy by opening a hinged door to the linen closet. There is one modernized bathroom.

 Looking into the Bedroom

 Updated Bathroom


The rental rate for the one-of-a-kind cottage currently runs $300-$325 a night. A minimum 2-night stay is required. For information about renting the cottage click here.


Roadboy's Travels © 2018
         

Thursday, March 8, 2018

Roadboy Tries Tru

Refined Minimalism

With the strength in the hospitality industry of late, chains are expending incredible energy to precisely target various market segments. So whenever I can I try out new hotel concepts to spot trends.

I credit Starwood for kicking this all into high gear when it hit a home run with its "W" chain. W introduced a brash, irreverent and high energy vibe to the stodgy tired American hotel industry. They followed it up with "W Lite" (Aloft) and the Element brands.

Lately Marriott and Hilton have erupted in a frenzy of new concepts. Edition, H, Curio, Tru....

Some of the branding has been internally concepted, some has emerged via acquisition (i.e. Marriott's acquisition of Europe's AC Hotels) and some by curation (Marriott's Autograph and Design or Hilton's Tapestry properties).

I've been sampling a number of the new offerings and some have left me invigorated (France's Citizen M) others completely unimpressed (Marriott's Moxy).

Last night I tried my first Tru by Hilton in Murfreesboro Tennessee. And, after a 2 night stay, I'm happy to report they got a lot right in this new, economy priced, brand.

Public Space / Fitness
The Tru lobby feels more like a college student union than a hotel lobby. The round reception / registration desk is a convenience store. 

Fido will find bowls with welcome biscuits and fresh water.

 Tru's Welcome Island

There was a pool table, popcorn machine and a big variety of colorful seating options. Some seating is configured to encourage conversation the rest to discourage it. The overall vibe is colorful and unabashedly trendy in a mid-century modern retro kind of way. I predict a short shelf life.

Tru's fitness room was well equipped (compared to other hotels in this price range).

Guest Rooms
Rooms are compact and close to perfect for a single or couple.

Room Finishes
Surfaces are hard. Floors are wood grain laminate (clean, doggie friendly, noisy). Walls are vinyl. Ceiling is gyp board. The room would benefit greatly from the addition of an acoustical ceiling treatment to soften room noise.

Bed
The bed and linens were perfect. 

Room Furniture
No space consuming desk in this little room, instead you get a curvy chair with swing-out tablet surface for writing or eating.

 The Rolly Chair

No dresser either. There is just a long narrow wall hung counter with shelf below. It holds the huge TV and offers a place for your wallet and rooms key. Next to the bed is a little red bongo table for your glass of water and hovering over the AC unit is a metal and lattice strap thingie. Space under the pedestal bed is configured for a suitcase or computer bag.

Closet
Nope. Closets are disappearing all over. Here there is a pipe rail with some hangers. Below the pipe is a flat laminate surface where you can set a suitcase. And under that is a small refrigerator (like it). 

 The "Closette"

Lighting and Power
Tru's Electrical Engineer gets an A+. The room had ample lighting placed exactly where it was needed. It was easy to figure out too. Outlets were plentiful and placed above counters (no moving the bed to find the one overburdened outlet).

Bathroom / Shower
The bathroom is just right. It offers a decent, well lit mirror. The shower is prefab (fine with me - no mildew in grout joints). The shower temp valve is placed so you can turn on shower water without stepping into the shower.

 Bathroom

Hooks
Lots of big hooks to hang stuff.

 Hooks!

Noise
The one negative is noise. Both in the room (hard surfaces and the noisy through wall AC unit) and between the rooms (energetic amorous neighbors equaled a steep volume increase on HBO last night).

Tru Minimalism - No more - No less


Roadboy's Travels © 2018