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A 15 minute walk around Downtown Waco.


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#1 Austin55

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Posted 10 February 2013 - 03:43 PM

I went to Austin on Thursday, came back Friday. Really enjoyed it, wish I had more time. 

I stopped in Waco on the way down, I was pleasantly suprised. Waco seems to be trying to build itself a good urban core, they have some nice bike lanes and lots of them have large green sections at lights. There are a few new apartment buildings on the north side that have residential on the upper few floors, and the bottom floor is covered park, but with retail at the corners. Though I did'nt walk that way, the area along the river is filled with trails and trees and seemed pretty active with bikers and dog walkers. Seemed very green to, several buildings had solar panels and lots of flower pots and trees.

 

Some of the bike Lanes

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b by Micro55, on Flickr
 

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x by Micro55, on Flickr

 

 

 

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bb by Micro55, on Flickr
 
Some of the new apartments, you can see the open but coverered parking spaces, but on the end there was a sandwhich shop or something, and another behind me.

 
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a by Micro55, on Flickr
 
Austin Avenue was the real core of the city, the "main" street, lined with trees, home brewed shops, theatres, and historic buildings. 
 
Kress looks a bit different here, but a beautiful building just like ours!

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z by Micro55, on Flickr
 

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w by Micro55, on Flickr
 

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v by Micro55, on Flickr
 
 
Nice little restoration/convesion. 

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n by Micro55, on Flickr
 

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m by Micro55, on Flickr
 

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q by Micro55, on Flickr
 

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e by Micro55, on Flickr
 

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y by Micro55, on Flickr
 
 
Some of the other bigger buildings around town.

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r by Micro55, on Flickr
 

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o by Micro55, on Flickr
 

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j by Micro55, on Flickr
 

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h by Micro55, on Flickr
 

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s by Micro55, on Flickr
 
 
Not all is perfect, there are still a bunch of either surface lots or empty overgrown lots. But progress is good. I understand that a good majority of the town was taken out by a Tornado in the 50's.

8463020458_5c2c5d579c_c.jpg
t by Micro55, on Flickr
 
 
What I really wanted to check out though was the Alico Building. At some point it had it's lower floors and entrance area just butchered. Makes me thankful for XTO restoring all the buildings they have here.
 
According to Wikipedia
 
"The ALICO Building is a 22-story office building in downtown Waco, TexasUnited States, located on Austin and 5th Streets. It was built in 1910 by the architectural firm Sanguinet & Staats and associate architect Roy Lane, for the Amicable Life Insurance Company at a cost of $755,000. It was completed in only one year."
 
Ofcourse, it has it's own relative here in Fort Worth. 
 

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aa by Micro55, on Flickr
 

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c by Micro55, on Flickr
 

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f by Micro55, on Flickr
 

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g by Micro55, on Flickr
 
All in all, Downtown Waco is a very nice place, and I feel like in a few years time it will be a buzzing little place. It's already on it's way and on all the right tracks.


#2 dangr.dave

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Posted 10 February 2013 - 10:33 PM

I like Waco, Austin.  Did you stop at the Common Grounds coffee shop?  It is a really cool place - here is one of the murals:

 

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This is home by dangr.dave, on Flickr

 

Also, if you like burgers and ice cream, I recommend stopping at Health Camp:

 

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This body brought to you by Health Camp by dangr.dave, on Flickr



#3 John T Roberts

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Posted 09 May 2022 - 01:54 PM

I walked around Downtown Waco on Saturday afternoon.  I will share a few photographs when I get them all edited.  I also stopped in Hillsboro for another walk around their Courthouse Square.



#4 John T Roberts

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Posted 09 May 2022 - 02:03 PM

Before 1953, Waco had a pretty dense downtown.  The F5 tornado on May 11, 1953 destroyed most of the old load bearing masonry/wood framed buildings.  It seems as if the only buildings that survived were the newer steel or concrete structures.  The surface parking lots of today are where the destroyed buildings were cleared and nothing has been built in their place.  I do realize that some of the new residential construction that Austin mentioned are starting to be built on these lots.



#5 Austin55

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Posted 09 May 2022 - 02:43 PM

I visited Waco last summer again and had lunch at Union Hall, a foodhall in downtown. It was packed with people and options and the food was very good. Waco is definitely an up-and-coming place. 



#6 John T Roberts

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Posted 09 May 2022 - 02:52 PM

I also ate at Union Hall, and I was impressed by the activity in the place.  I really didn't take enough pictures, but I had work done at the house on Saturday morning, so I just decided on the spur-of-the-moment, to get away.  After walking down Austin Ave. and getting home, I wish I had done research on all of the old historic buildings that are still standing.  At one time, Cox's, Monnig's, and Sanger's had stores in Downtown Waco.  My aunt worked for Cox's in 1953 and was inside when the tornado hit and the building collapsed. She survived and lived until 2005.  I have a photograph to post of the surviving tile entry and the surface parking lot where the building once stood.  As for the research, I can always get the names of the buildings, and then go back to take more pictures. 



#7 JBB

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Posted 09 May 2022 - 04:49 PM

It's interesting that Austin's original photos were taken a few months before Fixer Upper debuted.  I last visited the Magnolia Silos area in 2016 less than a year after the market opened.  I imagine that entire area is quite a bit different now.



#8 John T Roberts

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Posted 09 May 2022 - 05:22 PM

I didn't get over to the Magnolia Silos.  I did not leave Fort Worth until 1 PM, and I spent quite a bit of time in Hillsboro, so I didn't have a lot of time to spend in Waco.  Granted, I was actually there longer than I was in Hillsboro, but I was getting hungry and I wanted to eat.  I also had planned to stop in West for kolaches, and I preferred to get home before dark.



#9 JBB

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Posted 09 May 2022 - 06:47 PM

Eh, you're not missing much.  It's a really neat gathering place, it's an interesting re-use of some buildings, and the bakery is pretty good, but the store is little more than an overpriced souvenir shop.  



#10 John T Roberts

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Posted 09 May 2022 - 07:36 PM

I'm not really into overpriced souvenir shops.  Maybe on my next trip, I will stop in, but there are other places to see in town.  It's also not like Waco is a strange town to me.  I've done a few projects in the city were I did construction administration on a monthly basis.  I also rode their Waco Wild West Century a few times, so I have even stayed there overnight.  We started the bike ride at the Convention Center at the foot of the historic suspension bridge and we always stayed at the Waco Hilton.



#11 rriojas71

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Posted 09 May 2022 - 07:36 PM

Eh, you're not missing much.  It's a really neat gathering place, it's an interesting re-use of some buildings, and the bakery is pretty good, but the store is little more than an overpriced souvenir shop.  

I guess we must be thinking the same thing.  I walked in to that souvenir shop and it looked like everything in there was bought at Hobby Lobby



#12 JBB

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Posted 09 May 2022 - 07:41 PM

There's nothing you couldn't buy locally at a place like Painted Tree or even Homegoods.  I did buy an Italian food cookbook there that I like.






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