Downtown Austin is the central business district of Austin, Texas. It is where the city's highrise buildings are located, as well as being the center of government and business for the region. Downtown Austin is currently experiencing a building boom, with many condominium towers being built.
The approximate borders of Downtown include Lamar Boulevard to the west, 11th Street and sometimes Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard and the University of Texas at Austin to the north, Interstate 35 to the east, and Lady Bird Lake to the south.
The city hall is located in Downtown Austin and is the administrative office of Austin. Originally built in 1871, the city hall was demolished and rebuilt multiple times before the current one was built in November of 2004. The current city hall costed $55.6 million to build and contains a total of 7 stories, of which 3 are underground. Within the building, city council meetings take place in the council chambers. The city council, including the mayor, are voted by Austin's residents and serve 3 year terms.