The fast-transforming St. Elmo district in South Austin just got a significant makeover with the real estate firm Veloway Threads expanding its already considerable footprint. The company, which owns popular spaces like The Yard, snapped up eight additional properties in a December spree. Vice President of Operations and Community at Veloway Threads, Priscilla Sauceda, noted that the firm now holds around 1.75 million developable square feet and 500,000 square feet of creative warehouse space in the area, according to Austin Business Journal.
Adjacent to these developments, the St. Elmo Public Market has been sold and will forgo its original concept as a bustling market space. SomeraRoad, a real estate firm, purchased the property and leased it to Rise Brands. They will kick-start construction this year to transform it into Pins Mechanical and 16-Bit, featuring bowling lanes, arcade games, and a bar, as reported by Community Impact.
Meanwhile, residents of the St. Elmo Apartments, just steps from the formerly proposed public market, are facing an altered reality. The market that was once promised as an amenity, and still advertised as such on the apartment’s website as of late November, will instead entertain as a vintage-inspired gaming and social space. Despite the initial plans for a comprehensive market, Salt & Time's Benjamin Runkle of Present Tense Hospitality noted he is looking forward to finding common ground with the new owners, as per Community Impact.
