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HISTORIC LANDMARK COMMISSION DEMOLITION AND RELOCATION PERMITS AUGUST 7, 2024 PR-2024-065928; GF-2024-073054 3310 BOWMAN AVENUE 31 – 1 PROPOSAL Demolish a ca. 1951 house. ARCHITECTURE One- and one-half story eclectic revival house with mansard and flat rooflines, 6:6 symmetrical windows at the main elevation, and a side-entry garage at the basement level. The house is clad in painted stone veneer and shingle siding, with a monolithic chimney and decorative shutters at windows and doors. RESEARCH The house at 3310 Bowman Avenue was designed and built by developer Bob Bowman, advertised as a modern French Provincial residence in the newly platted Tanglewood neighborhood. By 1955, the home had been purchased by Madeleine and Travis LaRue. LaRue, who owned a laundry and dry-cleaning business with his brother, followed in his politically minded father’s footsteps. After serving three terms on the City Council from 1963 to 1969, Travis LaRue was elected mayor of Austin in 1969. He served one term. LaRue’s tenure as mayor and councilman coincided with one of the most turbulent and transformative periods in the twentieth century. He made headlines as a councilmember by opposing a city vote for an improved fair housing ordinance, preferring a longer public process that included realty and development groups in the community outreach process like San Antonio’s similar ordinance. LaRue’s requests for delaying decisions on codification of Civil Rights and push for “voluntary” integration were criticized by Civil Rights activists, but LaRue won the race for mayor in a landslide in 1969. As Mayor, LaRue pledged to lower taxes and run the city more like a business, with efficiency and economy at the forefront. LaRue supported student protests at the University of Texas after the Kent State shootings in 1970 and vowed to end water pollution in the city after his business was cited for releasing dry cleaning effluence into Waller Creek. Despite his 2-1 victory against incumbent Harry Akin in 1969, LaRue lost the mayor’s race in 1971 to school board president and car dealership owner Roy Butler. PROPERTY EVALUATION Designation Criteria—Historic Landmark 1) The building is more than 50 years old. 2) The building appears to retain high integrity. 3) Properties must meet two criteria for landmark designation (LDC §25-2-352). Staff has evaluated the property and determined that it may meet two criteria for landmark designation: a. Architecture. The building is an eclectic example of a modest suburban home with French Provincial influences. b. Historical association. The property is associated with developer Bob Bowman and with Austin businessman, c. Archaeology. The property was not evaluated for its potential to yield significant data concerning the human councilmember, and mayor Travis LaRue. history or prehistory of the region. d. Community value. The property does not appear to possess a unique location, physical characteristic, or significant feature that contributes to the character, image, or cultural identity of the city, the neighborhood, or a particular demographic group. e. Landscape feature. The property is not a significant natural or designed landscape with artistic, aesthetic, cultural, or historical value to the city. STAFF RECOMMENDATION Release the demolition permit only upon completion of a City of Austin Documentation Package. Though Travis LaRue served as Austin’s 46th mayor, he did not appear to have sufficient impact to meet the bar for historical associations when considering his overall contributions as a politician and business owner alongside his dilatory responses to Civil Rights issues in Austin. LOCATION MAP 31 – 2 PROPERTY INFORMATION Photos 31 – 3 31 – 4 Occupancy History City Directory Research, June 2024 Travis L. LaRue, owner 1959 1955 1952 Travis L. and Madaleine LaRue, owners – Travis Laundry Address not listed Historical Information 31 – 5 The Austin American (1914-1973); Austin, Tex.. 03 June 1951: A29. The Austin American (1914-1973); Austin, Tex.. 12 Aug 1951: A31. The Austin American (1914-1973); Austin, Tex.. 02 Sep 1951: 26 The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 27 July 1956: 2. 31 – 6 The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 09 Feb 1961: A20. 31 – 7 The Austin American (1914-1973); Austin, Tex.. 26 Mar 1961: B1. The Austin American (1914-1973); Austin, Tex.. 26 Mar 1961: B8. The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 22 Apr 1961: 16. 31 – 8 The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 19 Mar 1963: 9. The Austin American (1914-1973); Austin, Tex.. 23 June 1963: E13. 31 – 9 McMURTRY, CAROL. The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 09 Apr 1964: A1. 31 – 10 McMURTRY, CAROL. The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 10 Apr 1964: 1. 31 – 11 CAROL McMURTRY Staff Writer. The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 10 Dec 1964: A1. The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 01 Feb 1965: 6. 31 – 12 The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 27 May 1966: 14 The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 02 July 1968: 34. 31 – 13 SARA SPEIGHTS Staff Writer. The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 16 Aug 1968: 6. 31 – 14 CHRIS WHITCRAFT Staff Writer. The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 01 Oct 1968: 23. SARA HOWZE, Staff Writer, The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 21 Mar 1969: 27. 31 – 15 31 – 16 Fowler, Carol; SARA HOWZE Staff Writers. The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 06 Apr 1969: A1. 31 – 17 SARA HOWZE Staff Writer. The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 16 May 1969: 55. 31 – 18 The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 18 Dec 1969: B39. 31 – 19 ROWLAND NETHAWAY Staff Writer. The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 23 Apr 1970: B33. 31 – 20 ALAN BAILEY Staff Writer. The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 24 Apr 1970: 1. 31 – 21 ROWLAND NETHAWAY Staff Writer. The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 09 May 1970: 6. 31 – 22 The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 17 Aug 1970: 9. ALAN BAILEY Staff Writer. The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 18 Nov 1970: 1. 31 – 23 ALAN BAILEY Staff Writer. The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 19 Nov 1970: A1. 31 – 24 ALAN BAILEY Staff Writer. The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 06 Feb 1971: 1. ALAN BAILEY Staff Writer. The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 10 Feb 1971: A11. 31 – 25 “THE RAG interviews Mariana Hernandez.” 1971. Reprinted 2018, https://walterlippmann.com/tag/mariana-hernandez/. 31 – 26 The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 09 Mar 1971: 33. 31 – 27 RICK FISH Staff Writer. The Austin Statesman (1921-1973); Austin, Tex.. 04 Apr 1971: A1. https://www.statesman.com/story/news/2012/08/31/former-austin-mayor-travis-larue-dies-at-96/9936887007/ 31 – 28 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Travis_LaRue 31 – 29 31 – 30 Barnes, Michael. “In April 1964, Six Days of Protests Hastened Austin Desegregation.” Austin American-Statesman. Austin American-Statesman, April 8, 2014. https://www.statesman.com/story/news/2014/04/08/in-april-1964-six-days-of- protests-hastened-austin-desegregation/10109966007/. 31 – 31 Austinchronicle.com. “The Life and Times of Gus Garcia,” 2018. https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/2000-06-02/the- life-and-times-of-gus-garcia/. Permits