Pandemic and our annual week of cold, wet weather be damned—construction in Austin doesn't slow down for much or for long. 

Since most of us haven't been commuting (in any form) as much as usual in the past year, though, the rapid rise of larger developments can come as a surprise when you encounter them. Here are five areas where we're likely to see noticeable changes in 2021.

Downtown

This one's no surprise, of course. But it seems there's always a smidge more room to be had in the little patch of land between UT and the river, I-35 and North Lamar. Right now there are around 40 buildings planned or under construction in the neighborhood or nearby—including Google's fancy glass spinnaker (601 West Second Street), the Indeed tower (200 West Sixth Street), and 6XGuadalupe (400 West Sixth Street), which will be Austin's tallest building when it's complete (unless another one gets there first). Look for the Rainey Street area to be lousy with towers as well.

Waterloo Greenway

The ambitious project, a sort of linear park (can those be curvy?) and restoration that runs along Waller Creek and contains 35 acres of green space, isn't projected to be complete until 2026. But it's already changed the face of that landscape. The Symphony Square section is open, park programming is happening, and Waterloo Park and Moody Amphitheater are scheduled to reopen/open this spring.

Q2 Stadium

The building of a suitable stage for Austin's first major-league professional team of any sort was bound to elicit more than a little hubbub from the populace, and the stadium project didn't disappoint. The placement of the new home for  FC Austin (a soccer club, as it turns out) was a major bone of contention, and there was, inevitably, a petition opposing it followed by a public vote on a vaguely worded proposition that sort of related to its costs and funding (it failed). The project landed at 10414 McKalla Place, a city-owned site in North Austin. The stadium was formally named Q2 in January and is expected to open this year.

Project Connect

The $7.1 billion makeover/expansion of the city's public transit systems, approved by Austin voters last year, isn't so much a "development" as it is a "transportation plan." But that means construction of infrastructure as well as around most rail and bus stops. The plan includes $300 million for "anti-displacement" funds to help residents who will be affected by that development, to include such things as rehabilitation of existing affordable and deeply affordable housing, financial assistance for homeowners, and rental subsidies.

The wages of Musk

Yes, bitcoin hypeman and tunnel borer Elon Musk moved to Austin, or threatened to, or something along those lines, in 2020. Click-baity real-person relocation aside, the real story is the impact the Tesla factory under construction near state highway 130 and Austin-Bergstrom International Airport will have on residential construction and housing prices—not just around the factory's location just east of Austin, but all over the city. Then there's the planned third Tesla showroom that will take over the building long occupied by beloved and culturally essential rehearsal-space/equipment-rental business Music Lab. It's not a big development deal in and of itself, but it's a sad and apt metaphor that would be far too clunky if it weren't true.