Located in the Warehouse District
The Plaza Lofts building is located in the warehouse district downtown Austin, right across from Republic Square Park. All the Lofts have large balconies that are bigger than what you would expect; large enough to have furniture sets and easily entertain large groups of people. Although some home owners have modified the floor plans, or enclosed the bedrooms, the lofts were delivered in true loft style without any walls between the living spaces and bedrooms.
Spacious Designs
Plaza Lofts was developed in 2002 by The Sutton Company and was one of Austin’s first downtown highrise buildings. Back in 2002 the price of land in Austin was a lot less than it is today, and so were the construction costs. Therefore, the developers were able to be a little more generous with the size of the lofts. If you are looking for a lot of space, Plaza Lofts generally have larger and more spacious floor plans than the average condo downtown. The architectural firm that designed the building was Morris Architects.
Private Pool and Rooftop
There are 60 Lofts in total, and they all face North, West or South (there are no East facing units). The building is a total of 12 stories and has the pool on the rooftop. The pool is rather small, and the rooftop feels a little aged, but the compromise is that since there are only 60 lofts in the building, the pool is never packed and it has a very private feeling. On the rooftop you will also find outdoor gas grills and lounge area. The building has a very small fitness center with limited equipment; don’t cancel your gym membership! The HOA fee is $0.40 per square foot, which is pretty standard for Austin.
Wood Cabinets, Granite Countertops and Stainless Steel Appliances
Inside the lofts you will find large open spaces. Again, the lofts were delivered without walls and so you will find large open spaces. Some owners have remodeled and built walls, some have kept them original. So you don’t know what to expect from unit to unit. Inside the kitchens you can find 42 inch flush panel wood cabinets, granite countertops and stainless steel appliances. The kitchens mostly have electric cook tops but the units are also plumbed for gas. So with a small amount of work, you could upgrade your kitchen to include gas cooking. The bathrooms are very large, and most have big walk in showers with multiple shower heads. The bathrooms have lots of natural travertine and granite countertops. The travertine and granite is nice but one would expect a little nicer sinks and fixtures.
Certified Green Building
Plaza Lofts was one of the first buildings downtown Austin that was certified as a Green Building by the Austin Green Building Program and received a 4 Star Rating. All of the units air conditioning runs off the Austin chilled water system; therefore your monthly energy bills are very low! Much consideration was taken into consideration for the overall efficiency and environmental impact of the building, trying to reduce your individual footprint as much as possible. Unlike most buildings, the front lobby door is always locked and you either need your key fob, or be buzzed in by the front desk, just to enter the building.
24 Hour Concierge Service
Some people like this extra level of privacy and security, others are annoyed by it, just depends on your preference. As you enter the lobby there is a comfortable waiting lounge on the right hand side. Straight ahead you will find the concierge desk that is staffed 24 hours a day. All people who enter the building have to walk past the concierge desk in order to get to the elevators. The mail center is also on the main floor next to the concierge desk. Here you can pick you your mail, packages and also drop off outgoing mail. The building is monitored 24 hours and you would need key cards to access the front entrance, parking garage and operate the elevators.
Located in Warehouse District
The lofts range in size from 900 square feet to 2,350 square feet. Some of them have the elevators open up directly into the loft. These doors can only open up directly into your loft if you swipe your pre-programmed key fob, a really classy touch! The first floor of the building is retail and office space. To the west of the building you can walk right across the street into Republic Square Park. There is a large Farmers Market in Republic Square Park every Sunday morning where you can get everything from local organic grown fruits/vegetables to locally made goods. Across the street you will also find the downtown Post Office which comes in handy if you need to overnight a package or renew your passport. Since the building is in the Austin Warehouse District so you have countless bars and restaurants in walking distance.