Related Companies is turning a sleepy parking lot on the south shore of Lady Bird Lake into one of the most closely watched new towers in Austin. The waterfront project, One Lady Bird Lake, is now rising next to the Hyatt Regency and is slated to open in early 2028 with nearly 300 homes stacked above ground-floor restaurants.
The site has been under construction for about six months, with crews focused on foundational and below-grade work along the lakefront, according to Austin Business Journal. If the current schedule holds, residents could start moving in around early 2028, turning what is now a Hyatt Regency parking lot into a dense, mixed-use slice of the south waterfront and reshaping a key stretch of the Ann and Roy Butler Hike-and-Bike Trail.
What's being built
Public filings show One Lady Bird Lake rising on a roughly 3.3-acre parcel immediately adjacent to the Hyatt Regency. The plan calls for about 298 residences spread across 17 to 18 stories, plus roughly 14,000 square feet of restaurant and retail space wrapped around the ground level. Several levels of underground parking will sit below it all.
The building is designed with separate lobbies for condo owners and renters, along with sizable amenity areas aimed squarely at the lake views. Those details appear in project trackers covering the tower’s specs and layout, according to Groundbreak.
Design and waterfront access
New York architecture firm Kohn Pedersen Fox is leading the design. Early renderings show a curving tower with stepped terraces that peel back toward the water, creating a series of lake-facing outdoor spaces instead of a single flat wall along the shore.
Design materials highlight green spandrels, generous glazing and layered, landscaped terraces meant to frame the lake and capture as many views as possible. Those visuals and design notes come from KPF.
Trail, TxDOT and the boardwalk
If you have ever tried to squeeze past a weekend crowd on the Ann and Roy Butler Hike-and-Bike Trail near the Hyatt, you know that stretch can feel tight. One Lady Bird Lake drops right into that bottleneck and has become part of a longer-running debate over how to widen the trail and improve waterfront access.
State transportation officials floated a $25 million boardwalk concept intended as mitigation for I-35 impacts. Reporting shows the Trail Conservancy has been working with Related on a boardwalk idea tied to the project site, while TxDOT’s funding decisions and the city’s acceptance of an advanced funding agreement could determine how, and when, any trail widening or new waterfront connections actually get built. KUT has detailed the boardwalk negotiations and how they intersect with One Lady Bird Lake.
Timeline, approvals and what to watch
City officials granted a key site plan approval in mid-2025, clearing the way for the tower to move ahead. Contractor listings and project pages currently point to a February 2028 completion date. Public records and various project trackers do not always line up perfectly on start dates and milestones, which is a polite way of saying this timeline could still move around.
For more on approvals and scheduling, see contractor materials from Power Design.
Related originally explored an office tower on the site before shifting to a residential-heavy plan, a pivot that tracks with the broader Austin market. Once finished, One Lady Bird Lake will bring new housing and restaurant space to the south shore while keeping pressure on long-running questions about how much of the lakefront should feel like a private front yard for new buildings versus a shared backyard for the rest of the city.
Neighbors, trail regulars and anyone who cares about the waterfront will want to keep an eye on city permitting notices and any moves tied to the TxDOT boardwalk agreement as construction ramps up.
