The Austin Free Press reported on Mayor Watson’s plan to fast-track the purchase of two buildings for almost $108 Million Dollars to house the Police, Fire, and EMS. The proposed purchase was announced on October 11 by Austin Mayor Kirk Watson and is going to be voted on less than two weeks later, on Thursday, October 24th, by the Austin City Council. The title of the article is “Dirt Sorry”: Austin Mayor Kirk Watson proposes a city land deal tied to a PAC backing his reelection.
A city presentation at the Public Facilities subcommittee showed photos of the poor condition of the existing structures housing the public safety departments. In a press conference, Mayor Watson complained about the “failing mechanical systems and lack of parking to crumbling foundations and inadequate restroom facilities.” The public should know that these facilities are all owned and operated by the city of Austin and apparently not maintained very well by them either.
When Council member Mackenzie Kelly asked if they had considered other properties, the long answer was no. There was no Request for Proposal. An external real estate advisor pointed to these properties on Barton Skyway, which were “not technically on the market”. This property is 45% occupied. Currently, Austin has a 27% office vacancy rate, and more than 2 million square feet are under construction downtown alone. Staff decided building new facilities would be cost-prohibitive.
These properties are not centrally located and have access only from the MOPAC frontage road west of the greenbelt over the Barton Springs and Edwards Aquifer recharge zones. Importantly, a speaker at the subcommittee meeting voiced concern that from a security standpoint, it is not a great idea to consolidate all of your public safety buildings together in one location with poor access.
The property is owned by Brandywine Realty Trust. Coincidentally, days before Watson’s announcement of the proposed purchase of this property, Brandywine Operating Partners and an executive contributed $11,000 to the Austin Leadership PAC, which was formed to support Kirk Watson’s re-election as Mayor. The Austin Free Press reported that “Brandywine Realty Trust is showing signs of financial stress.” Presumably, offloading these properties will help Brandywine. It is unknown how much property tax revenue taking these properties off of the tax roll will cost the city over the life of the buildings.