Work on tallest Texas skyscraper to close part of Red River Street

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- The Austin Transportation Department says a portion of Red River Street will temporarily close for construction work on what will be the tallest skyscraper in Texas.

According to an ATD memo to city council on Thursday, ATD got a request from the developers at the Waterline complex at 98 Red River to close Red River from East Cesar Chavez Street to Driskill Street to install chilled water lines.

According to the permit request, the construction work would take an estimated 20 weeks, which would mean closing the road for a total of four weeks.

ATD says the contractor told the department on Jan. 3, “Due to depth of excavation at 20’ and segments of the pipe that must be installed at once, the road must be closed at times as trench and machinery will consume the whole roadway.”

According to ATD's memo to council, the only feasible way to install the water lines would be to close Red River Street.

The contractor told ATD it expected the work to begin sometime in January and to be completed by the time South by Southwest starts on March 10.

If the work is not finished by SXSW, ATD tells council the contractor is expected to temporarily restore Red River before the festival begins and will finish work only after SXSW ends.