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Best Kept Secret in Austin: This Amazing $3.5M Creative Retreat


Best Kept Secret in Austin: This Amazing .5M Creative Retreat

Best Kept Secret in Austin? This Amazing $3.5M Creative Retreat

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An eclectic and creative retreat in the middle of one of Austin‘s hippest, densest neighborhoods has hit the market for $3.5 million—and it comes with endless possibilities.

Dubbed the “Sekrit Theater” by locals (misspelling deliberate), the parcel includes a main home, a tiny cabin made of repurposed materials from New Orleans’ 9th Ward, a freestanding glass-and-steel atrium, an outdoor theater pavilion, and a full-size movie screen and projection house. The lot, which is on the city’s East Side, is circled by a stone and brick fence.

“When I first walked in, my jaw just dropped,” says listing agent Don Harvey. “I couldn’t believe what I was seeing in the middle of East Austin. Virtually every piece of land there has been gobbled up and turned into lofts and condos and townhouses, and here’s this 2-acre, estate-sized piece of property.”

Sekrit house
Sekrit house

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Outdoor theater
Outdoor theater

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Designer and artist Beau Reichert, a fixture on the local Austin arts scene, bought the property 10 years ago. He moved into the main house and gradually built the other structures, most of which were constructed from found materials.

The centerpiece of the property is the octagonal pavilion, which has a bell roof made of reclaimed barn wood and massive cedar posts. The pavilion has held scores of events over the past decade, including charity fundraisers, weddings, and parties.

Pavillion
Pavilion

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Sekrit theater
Sekrit Theater

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The two-story movie house and concession stand feature hexagonal tile and reclaimed barn wood. There’s also a French Quarter–style patio made with antique bricks from the Texas governor’s mansion. The movie house features a state-of-the-art projection room.

“The sound system for the movie theater is designed in such a way when you’re sitting in it, you can hear really well, but the speakers are highly directional,” Harvey says. “When you walk 100 paces away, you can’t hear a thing.”

A tiny cabin constructed of antique German logs, Texas stone, barn wood, and fossils sits nearby and features antique French and leaded-glass doors. The property also features a remastered shotgun house based on homes in New Orleans Bywater neighborhood.

Tiny house
Tiny cabin

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Bus
Bus “yard lounge”

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The various structures on the property are linked by pathways made of bricks that were sourced from the first dormitory at the former Southwest Texas State Normal School (now Texas State University). An outdoor bath (a claw-foot tub and brick shower) is illuminated by a chandelier in a nearby tree, and a vintage Crown Super Coach bus is affectionately dubbed the “yard lounge.”

Prospective buyers could use the space for residential purposes (e.g., short-term rental or bed-and-breakfast), or as a church, urban farm, or community gathering place. Harvey says he and his team are working closely with Reichert to find a “like-minded” buyer who will embrace the idea of the property being a creative space.

“I built this place to connect artists with a community, and to provide a unique experience where everyone felt welcome,” Reichert wrote in a Facebook post announcing the listing earlier this year. “Through the years you all have watched some of the most amazing performances, done photography projects, filmed movies and music videos, got married, had birthday parties, and wonderful charity events, and come to watch movies at the theater. … We want the new buyer to understand how special the Sekrit Theater is and how important it is to all of you.”

Not only is the Sekrit Theater vital to the community, it’s also one of a kind.

“It’s really beautiful in a rough-hewn kind of way, and everything he’s built there is extremely efficient,”  Harvey says. “I’ve been doing this for 15 years and I’ve seen all kinds of properties, but I’ve never seen anything like this.”

dreams happen here from Austin Music Realty on Vimeo.

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Source: Real Estate News and Advice – realtor.com » Real Estate News