When will new businesses fill vacant buildings on Sixth Street?

Yahoo

26-03-2025

AUSTIN (KXAN) — This week, downtown stakeholders discussed 'Sixth Street's Next Act,' as the city, as well as private organizations, continue efforts to rejuvenate the historic entertainment district and improve public safety.
Reopening the street to vehicular traffic was just one step. Other efforts include a holistic approach, which hinges largely on bringing in new businesses to diversify Sixth Street beyond just a nightlife destination.
'Well we're really targeting restaurants right now, a true curated mix of restaurants, something for everyone,' said Taylor Green with Stream Realty, the developer that owns roughly 30 properties on Sixth Street. Most of those buildings are between I-35 and Neches Street.
While Stream isn't ready to officially announce any of those restaurants that are moving into its vacant buildings, 'we're in negotiations right now with a lot of tenant types, both local and national. Right now we've got 17 sites that are under various stages of construction,' Green said.
Making 6th Street 'vibrant' part of city's public safety goal for entertainment district
Stream hopes to be able to share more about those businesses within six months and to see them open their doors within a year and a half.
The below renderings were approved by the historical review, Stream told KXAN.
Stream recognized two primary comments – which pose a dichotomy – from the public about the current state of Sixth Street:
A desire to preserve what people remember of what Sixth Street used to be
A desire to make improvements to the current state of the street
'Some of it being the perception right of Sixth Street,' Green said. 'Old 6th is historically known as a bar destination, a PM-activated street, so working hard to bring back that 18-hour neighborhood and bring people back on the street during the day.'
Back in 2022, Stream announced plans – and successfully pushed for some more lax zoning laws – to build various high rises on Sixth Street above the existing buildings. That vision changed over time.
'We've done our due diligence and found really the best use of the street is to restore the spaces that we have,' Green said.
At a forum held Tuesday morning by the Downtown Austin Alliance, Tamara Herold, a crime scientist, addressed the reduced crime rates APD has reported since allowing cars to drive on Sixth Street at all hours of the day, including weekend nights.
She spoke about the 'J-Curve' model, which exists in most communities, and exemplifies that the majority of crime typically takes place in certain concentrated areas. She presented heat maps to show that being the case not only in Austin as a whole, but downtown specifically, with a higher amount of incidents reported on Sixth Street than other areas of downtown.
Data released this month shows 177 use-of-force incidents, as well as 171 total arrests on Sixth Street during the first month and a half of 2024 when crowds could walk in the middle of Sixth Street; by comparison, there were 88 use-of-force incidents and 113 total arrests along Sixth Street during the same time this year, after the street was re-opened.
Austin Police Department Chief Lisa Davis has also created a new unit, the Downtown Area Rapid Response Team (DARRT). Davis formed this group by restructuring a team that would previously run preliminary on-scene investigations before specialized units arrived.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.