The Courtyard by Marriott – Austin/ University Area stands at the nexus of highways and byways north of the University of Texas campus and state capitol. SERA’s design provides a radical facelift for the property, originally designed and built in the 1980s as a brutalist style office building. The renovation features prototypical guestrooms done in the new CYnergy décor package, integrated with a fully-customized guest experience in the lobby and public spaces. As an homage to the “Lone Star State,” Texas symbology and riffs on the regional geology, ecology and culture were layered throughout the public spaces. A tongue-in-cheek Texas lone star is inlaid into the main entrance and lobby’s natural stone patterned tile. The reception check-in pods are contained under a deep blue enclosure with lively wood screening and a monumental art piece that pierces the ceiling, soaring to the atrium’s full four-story height. Beautiful oak wood slats accentuate the atrium’s volume, while a silhouette of Austin’s most beloved tree, the live oak, serves as a stately background presence on the full height glazed wall.
