Workers celebrate topping out of Austin 'sailboat building' concrete structure

A 35-story downtown Austin Class A office complex reached a construction milestone July 22.

The 814,081-square-foot building at 601 W. Second St., colloquially called the “sailboat building” was topped out. Topping out is when the final piece of structure is set in place, and in this office development’s case, that would be concrete. Trammel Crow Co., a commercial real estate investor and developer, and MSD Capital L.P. began constructing the office development in January 2019. The building stands as the final phase of the four-block Greenwater Treatment Plant Redevelopment project, which commenced in 2012. The building has terraces on every floor overlooking the lake and is projected to be completed in May 2022, according to a press release. A DPR construction spokesperson could not comment how much the project costs, but confirmed TCC and MSD Capital are funding it.

A concrete team from DPR Construction poured and built all of the concrete for the building. The press release stated 140 DPR workers, along with workers from over 50 trade partners and over 20 consultants, put in over 1 million hours of work.

Brad Maples, principal of the Trammel Crow Austin business unit, told Community Impact Newspaper the location of the development adds value to the office complex.

“We chose [the lot] for its prime location on West Second Street,” Maples said. “Obviously, the riverfront is a huge part of the value of this location. It’s truly special to have Lady Bird Lake on the south side and Shoal Creek on the west side. It has amazing views that are permanently protected to the west and 180 degrees down Lady Bird Lake.”

Attendees of the celebration felt proud of the work they have put in to contribute a monumental structure to the city, DPR Construction Project Executive Andrea Weisheimer told Community Impact Newspaper.

“This building is really iconic for the city of Austin because as you drive down Cesar Chavez, it’s the first thing you see,” Weisheimer said. “It’s going to change the skyline.”

Hundreds of workers poured much of their lives into the project the last two years, DPR Superintendent David Rayner IV said, putting in 10-12 hours of work a day, including midnight shifts.

“We’ve lived and breathed this job,” Rayner said. “It's been two years of going. There’s not a day of rest.”

Trammel Crow said negotiations continue with potential tenants.