Convention Center Marshalling Yard Under Construction for Staging, to Ease Traffic

August 26, 2021

AUSTIN, Texas – To alleviate downtown event traffic and address the need for off-site storage, the Austin Convention Center Department (ACCD) has started the construction of a new 70,000 square foot off-site building to serve as a marshalling yard and warehouse.

Located on a site at the Northwest edge of the intersection at U.S. Highway 183 and Texas Highway 71, the marshalling yard will stage convention center-bound truck deliveries to relieve downtown traffic. The warehouse will provide storage for the Austin Convention Center, the Palmer Events Center, and other city departments and is designed to achieve LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Silver certification.

“The construction of the marshalling yard is one of our long-term strategies to improve, coordinate and relieve Red River Street traffic that leads to the convention center service yard,” said Trisha Tatro, Austin Convention Center Department Director. “As a part of the downtown community, this is how the Austin Convention Center can logistically assist with the efficiency of traffic flow and increase pedestrian safety.”

Currently, ACCD manages a queuing and staging system for idling trucks and vehicles, on Red River Street, organizing them to the Austin Convention Center service yard and loading docks.

Functioning as a staging area for client move-ins and move-outs for events, away from the downtown area, the new facility is being constructed on undeveloped land off U.S. Hwy. 183. The marshalling yard layout can provide parking for up to 112 trucks and tractor-trailers along with spaces for employee and vehicle parking. The warehouse will face the connecting highways with truck traffic entering from U.S. 183 and exiting onto Texas 71.

The new facility under construction at 1400 Airport Commerce Drive will include nearly 60,000 square feet of usable warehouse space with a covered and uncovered loading dock, 5,000 square feet of administrative space, 5,000 square feet of shipping and receiving space, and a separate 2,000 square foot building to serve as a driver/truck personnel lounge and security suite.

On Nov. 29, 2018, the design-build Austin Convention Center Warehouse and Marshalling Yard project was approved and authorized by the Austin City Council with an approved budget of $40 million. Austin-based PGAL is the project architect and SpawGlass Contractors, Inc. is the design-build construction contractor. Estimated to be completed in 2022, the project includes water quality and bio-filtration ponds and the commissioning of a visual arts project that will be visible from Airport Commerce Drive as part of the City of Austin Art in Public Places (AIPP) program.

About the Austin Convention Center

The Austin Convention Center is a LEED® Gold-certified and GBAC STAR™-accredited facility. Located in the heart of downtown, the Austin Convention Center Department operates the Austin Convention Center and Palmer Events Center. The Austin Convention Center Department is comprised of 301 full-time staff positions and is an enterprise department for the City of Austin. As an enterprise department, ACCD is not funded by property taxes, sales taxes, or through transfers from the electric and water utilities. Over 10 million people have attended 6,000+ events, including over 900 conventions, at the convention center since it opened in 1992.