These are the businesses that may be pushed out by Austin’s light-rail project

From KUT News:

Austin’s light-rail project is moving forward, and with it, dozens of businesses could be demolished. But exactly which ones?

Despite releasing a 16,000-page environmental report, the Austin Transit Partnership (ATP) has not published a list of affected businesses and homes like the Texas Department of Transportation did for the I-35 expansion.

Instead, ATP included more than 200 pages of maps (split between this PDF and that PDF) showing the light-rail route with buildings marked for possible demolition. ATP says up to 64 businesses and four single-family homes could be expropriated.

Some property owners have been notified, but not all. Businesses that lease their spaces are left to find out through their landlords — or they learned about it when we reached out for comment.

KUT News analyzed the maps block-by-block to determine which properties are in the path of Austin’s 10-mile, high-frequency rail system. We were able to identify 60 of the 64 businesses and three of the single family homes. ATP says the potential property impacts were identified in Spring 2024 and businesses may have changed or moved out since then.

Trains in the system would run as frequently as every five minutes and have their own dedicated lanes, allowing them to move faster than traffic during rush hour. Creating the dedicated guideway requires widening the road in some places.

Other land will be used for park-and-rides at the end of each line, a 62-acre operations and maintenance facility or light-rail infrastructure like so-called traction substations that convert electricity to power the trains. Construction is expected to begin in 2027 and end in 2033.

Some properties could be seized through eminent domain in 2026, after Austin gets a final green light to move forward from the Federal Transit Administration.

We’ve highlighted a few locations below. A complete list is at the bottom of this story.

A thrift store and HIV clinic at risk

Out of the Closet is a thrift store that opened last May on Guadalupe Street just north of 29th Street. But it’s more than a place to shop for vintage clothes. It also houses a health care center geared toward people living with HIV.

“We are the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, so everything that we do for the store benefits our medical side and our HIV care for those living in Austin,” said store manager Audrey Talbot.

The AHF Healthcare Center is already expanding into another building next door.

“We have plans to turn that into a clinic and care facility and our donations processing center,” Talbot said.

Under the current rail plan, both buildings would be torn down. So would neighboring restaurants Sip Pho, Kabobzi Mediterranean Grill & Phoenician Resto Cafe, Little Patagonia Empanadas & Cafe and Salsa Limon. An Exxon at Guadalupe and 29th Streets would be displaced along with the Abu Omar Halal restaurant on the corner of the property.

Dirty Martin’s Place, a 99-year-old hamburger restaurant that had been slated for displacement in earlier plans, will be spared by the new design.

“We continue to monitor the situation while keeping our primary focus on our first priority, ensuring the quality of (care of) our clients,” AIDS Healthcare Foundation spokesperson Imara Canady said in a text message.

Austin’s first women’s sports bar faces uncertain future

A few blocks away, at Guadalupe and Dean Keeton streets, another business is at risk and it hasn’t even opened yet: 1972 Women’s Sports Pub — Austin’s first-ever bar dedicated to women’s athletics.

Debra Hallum and her wife Marlene du Plessis are preparing to open the bar in March, just in time for the NCAA Women’s March Madness tournament.

ATP’s plan would extend Dean Keeton Street straight through the property to connect to San Antonio Street, because most cars and trucks would be restricted from the Drag to create space for the large number of walking students.

Hallum and du Plessis knew about the potential displacement before signing the lease. They moved forward anyway.

Their fresh entry into the hospitality business meant the couple struggled to convince landlords and insurance companies to give them a shot. But the Moody’s Bar and Grill owners reached out and offered a space with a kitchen, bar, beer taps and even furniture.

“We came into this with our eyes wide open,” Hallum said. “It was either go to a shell or a different location and spend a ton of money, or take this opportunity that was financially better and start building this community now.”

For now, they plan to stay open as long as they can.

A 16-year-old dry cleaning business in limbo

Further up Guadalupe, Mai Fause, owner of My Cleaners and Alterations didn’t know her store was marked for possible demolition.

The dry cleaning business at Guadalupe and 31st Streets has been operating there for 16 years.

“We’re leasing the building,” Fause said. “Probably need to talk to my landlord.”

Fause, 75, said she supports the transit expansion but doesn’t know what she’ll do next.

“I like the city to build big and do well and all that stuff,” she said. “Of course, I want to do that. But then, I’m also 75 years old. I’m going to retire in the next couple of years. So I don’t know. Something we need to think about, huh?”

ATP is only notifying property owners, not business tenants, leaving many unaware — for now — that they could have to move.

“A number of the property owners have asked us to allow them to be the communicator with their tenants. And so we’ve honored that,” said Jennifer Pyne, ATP executive vice president of planning.

Groovy Lube and Oribello’s Bar

Even some property owners don’t know they’re on the list.

At 37th and Guadalupe streets, the property housing Groovy Lube, an auto repair shop, and Oribello’s Bar and Kitchen, is set to be demolished to make room for an electrical substation that will power the rail system.

The property owner, Bobby Delmonico, was unaware of this until KUT News reached out. When asked for comment, he declined to speak on the record.

Airport Commerce Park: the largest cluster of displacements

The single largest concentration of displaced business is at Airport Commerce Park, an office park near Austin-Bergstrom International Airport.

The site has been chosen for a 62-acre maintenance facility, where the city’s new trains will be stored and serviced overnight.

According to ATP, about a third of all commercial displacements — 24 businesses — will be required to make space for the facility. KUT News was able to count 21 businesses at the location. The change might be because ATP conducted its survey in Spring 2024.

Homes and a gas station on Riverside Drive

Beyond businesses, a handful of homes are at risk.

ATP is recommending construction of tree-lined pedestrian and bike paths down the middle of Riverside Drive, providing a shaded alternative route with easier train access.

But to build the optional pathways, ATP says it may need to demolish up to four single-family homes, a business specializing in international money transfers and a Shell gas station, which is also home to La Sabroza taco truck.

ATP can’t start acquiring properties until it receives federal approval. The agency hopes that will come later this year or early 2026.

“We may start some acquisitions following that record of decision, but really, we’re eyeing the majority of our acquisitions happening in 2027,” Gale said.

ATP estimates it will spend about $1 billion acquiring 84 acres of land for the project. Most of the 308 parcels to be expropriated would be smaller slices of properties that wouldn’t affect the structures.

While property owners will receive compensation, eminent domain payouts often fail to cover the full cost of relocating and re-building a customer base. Those leasing may be entitled to relocation benefits.

For now, ATP says it will meet with any affected property owners and tenants who reach out. The environmental report is open to public feedback through March 11.

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