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The design team opted to align the opaque restroom modules along the
building’s western elevation, creating greater solidity along the street edge, with
a service access cluster to the north. This move reinforces the urban experience
along Aldrich Street, while greater transparency along the building’s east side
extends the park visually and prioritizes the pavilion’s relationship to the green
space. Glassy openings between the restroom modules provide framed views to
Mary Elizabeth Branch Park beyond, and views to the street from the park are
minimized. “I love being able to stand in the pavilion and see the activity that’s
happening in the park simultaneously,” says Faust. “I think that’s really powerful.”
The restrooms were unique at the time of their design in that they consist of
separately enclosed unisex stalls that open to a shared sink wall. While this is now
a more common design practice as a way to support greater equity and inclusion,
the intention was primarily to support long-term 昀氀exibility in the building’s uses.
Glass, bifolding doors measuring approximately 20 feet by 10 feet allow for
nearly continuous access to the pavilion from the east and west. This access
supports the throngs of vendors and visitors (my family and me included) who
have made visiting the Texas Farmers’ Market at Mueller a regular part of
their weekend routines. As if the weekly activation of the site weren’t already
enough to prove the value of this pavilion to its community, the project was
also recognized with AIA Austin’s 2022 Community Impact Design Award.
The adaptable interior space achieves its lightness and airiness through great
coordination between the building’s architectural and engineering systems. The
roof, supported by white spider columns, almost appears to 昀氀oat. While the
opaque roof over the conditioned space has as much as 24 inches of insulation, the pro昀椀le reads as a deceptively thin white edge thanks to the building’s
tapered beams. The ceiling features two large, round HVAC ducts painted
white, as well as 18 skylights that 昀椀lter daylight from above, but otherwise the
ceiling plane remains unobstructed. Rainwater drains from the roof to the west,
where downspouts that align with the mullions virtually disappear. “We took
great pains to make sure that you couldn’t see a lot of the systems,” notes Faust.
While the building succeeds at multiple scales — urban, building, and
detail — the program’s obvious 昀氀aw is a lack of storage space. While a catering
kitchen and a bridal suite were included in the service cluster, the venue has
no place to store tables, chairs, or other furnishings. As a result, these must be
rented, set up, and removed for every event. These coordination demands can
make it di昀케cult for the venue to be rented by nonpro昀椀t organizations, which
primarily operate through the e昀昀orts of volunteers.
Though constructed through a public-private partnership between the city
of Austin and Catellus, the master developer for the Mueller neighborhood,
during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the project experienced few
setbacks. “The project went surprisingly smoothly during that time,” says Lawrence Group Managing Principal Luma Ja昀昀ar, AIA. “There might not have
been as many meetings on site, but I think, in general, construction during that
time kept going without major delays to the schedule.” The Texas Farmers’
Market moved into the venue in June 2021, and it’s been an integral part of
the community ever since.
The project is a light, airy jewel box in the garden. While the lack of storage space on site presents limitations to its users, the project succeeds from
its urban scale down to the details, and it’s a third place that is well-utilized
by Austinites of all ages. Says Ja昀昀ar: “It’s a joy to see this project being really
appreciated and enjoyed by the community.”
Top Strong coordination across design disciplines allowed for a ceiling uncluttered by
building services. Skylights provide daylight to the space.
Bottom Porosity between the pavilion and the park is achieved through large bifolding,
glass doors.
Allison Wilson, AIA, is an architect and the sustainability director at Ayers Saint
Gross, a nationally recognized leader in high-performance design for colleges,
universities, and cultural institutions. She lives in Austin.
1/2 2024
Texas Architect 81
