In Austin, Texas on the trendy South Congress corridor, this deep, narrow site was the former home of a Chinese restaurant that had sat vacant for some time. The owners envisioned a "modern rustic" 80-room boutique hotel that blends a hotel experience with the best perks of Home Away and Airbnb: a small neighborhood hotel with spacious suites designed to feel like you're staying in a house. They saw the potential in this overlooked site and invested in the belief that the South Congress district would continue to evolve and improvements would continue to spread south. So, Colton House Hotel became the second hospitality project for Chicago-based Krug Development, following their success with a condos-turned-hotel project, The Guesthouse Hotel in Chicago's Andersonville neighborhood.

Hitchcock Design Group of Indianapolis, Indiana, was brought on board to develop an overall site plan that included a back-yard-themed amenity area consisting of a coffee bar deck, pool and patio, private cabanas, pergola shade structures, a bio-retention area for water quality and infiltration, and the planting plan.

The gently sloping site drops 28' from its Congress Avenue frontage to the rear of the site. This natural grade provided an opportunity for vehicles to enter along the south side of the hotel and descend to enter the lower-level parking garage, located beneath the hotel. Additionally, the property was home to several large Live Oak trees which are protected from development by the City of Austin's Tree Ordinance. The grade change and existing trees provided both a design challenge and its greatest opportunities.

 

From the start, the concept for the backyard consisted of three distinct zones: the deck, the lawn, and the pool. Hitchcock Design Group studied multiple layouts to determine what would best serve the owner and provide the most versatility for the space. Initially, the idea was to group the lawn and pool into one space, accessed through a hedge "wall" from the deck. This would allow the pool fence to be hidden in landscaping and create an interesting gateway to the party area. However, after studying the space in three dimensions and through discussions with the owner, it was decided that the lawn and coffee deck worked better as a grouped space and would provide more versatility and opportunity for hosting events.

Hitchcock Design Group created a versatile, multi-functional amenity space for the hotel. The design provides a shaded exterior deck for Simona's Coffee + Cocktails. Three of the site's protected Heritage trees are seamlessly integrated into the coffee deck, further adding to the hotel's 'new meets old' aesthetic. The finished floor elevation of the hotel is two feet above the grade of the existing trees, which led to the idea of an elevated deck spanning the space. The composite deck was designed to sit on a steel frame to span the protected critical root zone of the specimen Live Oak trees. This added significant cost to the deck, but due to the proximity of the hotel building to the trees, this was the best way to utilize the space and provide accessibility. One of the live oak trees appears to rise out of the deck, while the deck steps down to grade around the other two trees. A simple mulch seating area and fire pit lounge take advantage of the shade of these two trees and work within the critical root zone. Adjacent to the fire pit, the hotel's entry drive also provides a location for food trucks during special events.

The deck transitions to a synthetic turf lawn, which provides additional seating and yard games, and can be tented for special events. The lawn has hosted photo shoots, yoga classes, and concerts, to name a few. Along the back edge of the lawn, a cedar shade pergola helps define the space and provides a structure for hanging misters, fans, and lighting. The pergola and planting beds edging the lawn help to integrate the pool fence into the overall composition. Planting along the synthetic turf also helps to soften the edge and give the turf a more realistic appearance. The decision to go with a synthetic product was due to the expected wear and tear of pedestrian traffic on the space, as well as reducing the need for irrigation in the Austin heat.

The decision to keep the coffee deck and lawn flush led to the design of a retaining wall that steps down to the pool area. Initially, the design included a central stair that would create a grand entrance to the pool patio. An accessible ramp wraps around the edge of the lawn, providing access to the pool. As the building design evolved and other site constraints continued to shrink the space available for the amenity area, the stairs were removed so the lawn could function better without the need for circulation cutting through the center of it. The accessible ramp became the sole way to access the pool, so a section of the shade pergola was raised to accentuate the pool entry, celebrate the gate, and allow for unique chandelier lighting.

A cast-in-place concrete retaining wall creates a vertical transition from the lawn to the pool patio, stepping down to generally follow the natural grade of the site. 'Sofa' benches are integrated into the wall, providing additional seating for the relatively small pool patio without the need for a significant amount of furniture. Chaise lounges and private cabanas fill out the pool patio, providing options for both sun lovers and those preferring to stay out of the hot Austin sun.

The property steps down once again from the pool patio to the entry drive. A bioretention area that also serves as a dog walk space is located at the rear of the property. Native plants are used to create an aesthetically pleasing amenity out of this necessary stormwater feature.

The hotel has been a success with visitors and Austin residents alike. Locals patronize Simona's and attend shows hosted by Colton House on the lawn. The hotel has received numerous accolades, including TripAdvisor's "Hottest U.S. Hotels, 2022" and Good Housekeeping's "Best Family Travel Awards, Southern States, 2023." Colton House invites you to "Wander Home!"