Proper Good Time

Austin Proper reveals opening date for 32-story downtown hotel and condominium tower

It's been years since Austin Proper Hotel & Residences announced it was propping up in downtown Austin, bringing with it a celebrity interior designer and local hospitality pros, but it appears the wait is finally over. The glitzy hotel and condominium tower will open its doors in June, according to a release.

Austin Proper is the Los Angeles-based brand's first property outside of California. The towering 32-story building, located at 600 W. Second St., will feature 224 hotel rooms on the lower levels with the top 20 stories reserved for residences and larger penthouses.

“Austin’s a city full of people who share our appreciation for the idea of a life well-lived, and it’s a natural fit for the first Proper hotel located outside California,” said Brian De Lowe, president and co-founder of Proper Hospitality and The Kor Group, in a release. “This city is booming, vibrant, creative, and just plain cool. It’s one of our favorite places to spend time.”

Among Austin Proper's features:

99 residences
244 hotel rooms and suites
three restaurants
two bars
outdoor lounge
two elevated swimming pools
full-service spa and wellness facility
nearly 10,000 square feet of meeting space

Famed interior designer Kelly Wearstler oversaw design for both the hotel and condos, using "local raw material, hand-crafted tiles, and unique original art adding thoughtful details to guestrooms."

"Wearstler’s design for Austin Proper is influenced by the area’s historic, articulate Craftsman-style homes paying homage to Art Nouveau and Arts & Crafts motifs, joinery techniques, textures, and materials," said a release.

All things "Austin" inspired the look, including neon sign-inspired light fixtures; vintage carpets; assorted pots by local ceramicist Rick Van Dyck; photographs by Austin-based Barry Stone; and elmwood, a material indigenous to Central Texas.

Leading the food and beverage offerings are Larry McGuire and Tom Moorman of McGuire Moorman Hospitality. According to a release, MMH is conceptualizing a poolside Mexican eatery, a Mediterranean-inspired grill, a coffee shop and cafe with to-go options, and two cocktail bars.

Rooms for Austin Proper begin at $350 per night. Information about residences can be found here.

Austin Proper Hotel & Residences is the company's first hotel outside of California.

Austin Proper Hotel & Residences

Austin Proper Hotel & Residences is the company's first hotel outside of California.

hotels openings

Back to the Plow

Homey Austin jam and bake shop closing and returning to farmers market

Confituras/Instagram

Confituras Little Kitchen is closing its brick-and-mortar store, but feeling optimistic about the future.

A famers market find is returning to its natural environment after six years in a brick-and-mortar location. Confituras Little Kitchen, which specializes in locally sourced preserves, is closing its jam and biscuit shop after service on Sunday, December 22. However, it will continue selling goods at the Barton Creek Farmers Market and via retailers.

Confituras announced the change in a newsletter to its customers in December. The letter called the news "bittersweet."

"Although the brick and mortar will no longer be, the good news is that this will be a fresh new start for us – we are bursting with energy and creativity at the thought of being back out in the community where it all started for confituras," it said.

The kitchen is closing because the lease is up, and the team has decided to "give up the chase." The newsletter emphasized the ups-and-downs of business over the past several years — ones that were chaotic for just about any business, let alone a small, fairly niche food operation.

"So much has happened since we decided to open a brick + mortar – a wonderful kickstarter fundraiser, THE PANDEMIC, the AFTER-EFFECTS OF THE PANDEMIC, and an ever growing city," the letter says. "We tried so very hard but never really got our footing. We know we are not alone, many small business are in the same boat. We renewed our lease during the pandemic because we were hopeful we could make it work - the changing times had other ideas."

Finally, it shared how customers could keep enjoying Confituras creations:

The Barton Creek Farmers Market is open at 2901 S. Capital of Texas Hwy. every Saturday from 9 am to 1 pm.
A list on confituras.net compiles retailers including Royal Blue Grocery, Farmhouse Delivery, and Antonelli's Cheese Shop.
Jam share and Table22 subscription customers will have more instructions coming soon about picking up their goods in January at the same space, 2129 Goodrich Ave.
Customers may also reach out to inquire about continuing to order meals directly.

The kitchen also hosted frequent events and workshops, but the letter did not address this aspect of the business.

A shorter message shared on Instagram has inspired 63 comments so far, five days later. Customers eulogized the shop for its community feel and providing a sense of regularity during the height of the pandemic thanks to weekend pick-ups.