Block 185


Block 185 is an under construction office skyscraper located at 601 W. 2nd St. in Downtown Austin, Texas. Upon completion in 2021, the tower will be the fourth tallest in Austin at 589 feet. Block 185 will be the tallest office tower in Texas outside of Houston or Dallas, reaching 73 feet taller than the runner-up Frost Bank Tower. As of June 25, 2019, public renderings of the tower’s architecture have been advertised at the construction site. Block 185 is on Austin’s upcoming Waterfront district, bound to the west by the Shoal Creek Walk, to the east by The Northshore, to the north by Austin Proper Hotel & Residences and to the south by Lady Bird Lake. The tower is located on the final parcel of the former Green Water Treatment Plant.

History

After many years of planning, along with many design changes increasing and decreasing in height, Block 185 started construction on January 16, 2019. Even after the groundbreaking, the tenants of the tower had not yet been announced. On January 31, Brandywine announced that Google would lease the entire building. The Austin-American Statesman released the first renderings the same day.