Residential tower could replace Frank & Angie’s site (eventually): Update

Even before Monday brought the news that Austin culinary stalwart Frank & Angie’s Pizzeria on West Sixth Street would be closing, rumors flew that nearby Hut’s Hamburgers, the little Deco building next door that has satisfied Austin’s old-school burger cravings for more than 75 years, would close along with it.

The Hut’s rumor turned out to be unfounded, at least for now, according to reports citing Mike Hutchinson, who owns both restaurants. Nearby Irene’s, the more recently established restaurant and bar adjacent to Austin City Lofts, has a long-term lease and is expected to continue full speed ahead for the foreseeable future, according to Manifold Real Estate, the possible developer of the properties where Irene’s and Frank & Angie’s are located.

Towers, the development blog of the Towers Realty site, published some informed conjecture on the future of the sites at 506 and 508 West Avenue Monday. Reporter James Rambin dug into city documents in February and reported that a 28-story residential tower with ground-floor retail, named West Avenue Apartments, seems to be in the works for that spot.

Rambin’s Monday story looks at the combination of publicly available documents concerning the properties and seems to indicate “heavily” that a residential tower could be developed a residential tower on the lots.

Based on signatures on some of the documents, the Towers story names Riverside Resources—the commercial real estate firm behind Fifth & West, 300 Colorado, and the Whitley—as the likely developer of the properties. However, a representative of Riverside addressed that conclusion in a Thursday email to Curbed Austin, clarifying that Riverside is part of a partnership put together and managed by Manifold Real Estate and is not the majority owner nor controlling partner. It included the statement below from Manifold.

“There has been speculation recently about the fate of Irene’s and Frank & Angie’s. Irene’s has a long-term lease and we fully expect them to be in operation for years to come. We are also actively exploring other restaurant concepts for the Frank & Angie’s location when it becomes available.” – Manifold Real Estate

Good news for Irene’s fans—and let’s hear it for Hut’s while we’re at it.

Correction: This story has been corrected to clarify the nature of the role of Riverside Resources, which was originally named as the property’s likely developer. It has also been corrected to clarify the expected immediate future of the restaurant Irene’s and the space to be vacated by Frank & Angie’s Pizzeria.

• Let’s Catch Up on Frank & Angie’s Residential Tower Plan [Towers]

• Downtown’s Most Mysterious Building Proposals, Mapped [Towers]