• Home
  • popular
  • EVENTS
  • submit-new-event
  • CHARITY GUIDE
  • Children
  • Education
  • Health
  • Veterans
  • Social Services
  • Arts + Culture
  • Animals
  • LGBTQ
  • New Charity
  • TRENDING NEWS
  • News
  • City Life
  • Entertainment
  • Sports
  • Home + Design
  • Travel
  • Real Estate
  • Restaurants + Bars
  • Arts
  • Society
  • Innovation
  • Fashion + Beauty
  • subscribe
  • about
  • series
  • Embracing Your Inner Cowboy
  • Green Living
  • Summer Fun
  • Real Estate Confidential
  • RX In the City
  • State of the Arts
  • Fall For Fashion
  • Cai's Odyssey
  • Comforts of Home
  • Good Eats
  • Holiday Gift Guide 2010
  • Holiday Gift Guide 2
  • Good Eats 2
  • HMNS Pirates
  • The Future of Houston
  • We Heart Hou 2
  • Music Inspires
  • True Grit
  • Hoops City
  • Green Living 2011
  • Cruizin for a Cure
  • Summer Fun 2011
  • Just Beat It
  • Real Estate 2011
  • Shelby on the Seine
  • Rx in the City 2011
  • Entrepreneur Video Series
  • Going Wild Zoo
  • State of the Arts 2011
  • Fall for Fashion 2011
  • Elaine Turner 2011
  • Comforts of Home 2011
  • King Tut
  • Chevy Girls
  • Good Eats 2011
  • Ready to Jingle
  • Houston at 175
  • The Love Month
  • Clifford on The Catwalk Htx
  • Let's Go Rodeo 2012
  • King's Harbor
  • FotoFest 2012
  • City Centre
  • Hidden Houston
  • Green Living 2012
  • Summer Fun 2012
  • Bookmark
  • 1987: The year that changed Houston
  • Best of Everything 2012
  • Real Estate 2012
  • Rx in the City 2012
  • Lost Pines Road Trip Houston
  • London Dreams
  • State of the Arts 2012
  • HTX Fall For Fashion 2012
  • HTX Good Eats 2012
  • HTX Contemporary Arts 2012
  • HCC 2012
  • Dine to Donate
  • Tasting Room
  • HTX Comforts of Home 2012
  • Charming Charlie
  • Asia Society
  • HTX Ready to Jingle 2012
  • HTX Mistletoe on the go
  • HTX Sun and Ski
  • HTX Cars in Lifestyle
  • HTX New Beginnings
  • HTX Wonderful Weddings
  • HTX Clifford on the Catwalk 2013
  • Zadok Sparkle into Spring
  • HTX Let's Go Rodeo 2013
  • HCC Passion for Fashion
  • BCAF 2013
  • HTX Best of 2013
  • HTX City Centre 2013
  • HTX Real Estate 2013
  • HTX France 2013
  • Driving in Style
  • HTX Island Time
  • HTX Super Season 2013
  • HTX Music Scene 2013
  • HTX Clifford on the Catwalk 2013 2
  • HTX Baker Institute
  • HTX Comforts of Home 2013
  • Mothers Day Gift Guide 2021 Houston
  • Staying Ahead of the Game
  • Wrangler Houston
  • First-time Homebuyers Guide Houston 2021
  • Visit Frisco Houston
  • promoted
  • eventdetail
  • Greystar Novel River Oaks
  • Thirdhome Go Houston
  • Dogfish Head Houston
  • LovBe Houston
  • Claire St Amant podcast Houston
  • The Listing Firm Houston
  • South Padre Houston
  • NextGen Real Estate Houston
  • Pioneer Houston
  • Collaborative for Children
  • Decorum
  • Bold Rock Cider
  • Nasher Houston
  • Houston Tastemaker Awards 2021
  • CityNorth
  • Urban Office
  • Villa Cotton
  • Luck Springs Houston
  • EightyTwo
  • Rectanglo.com
  • Silver Eagle Karbach
  • Mirador Group
  • Nirmanz
  • Bandera Houston
  • Milan Laser
  • Lafayette Travel
  • Highland Park Village Houston
  • Proximo Spirits
  • Douglas Elliman Harris Benson
  • Original ChopShop
  • Bordeaux Houston
  • Strike Marketing
  • Rice Village Gift Guide 2021
  • Downtown District
  • Broadstone Memorial Park
  • Gift Guide
  • Music Lane
  • Blue Circle Foods
  • Houston Tastemaker Awards 2022
  • True Rest
  • Lone Star Sports
  • Silver Eagle Hard Soda
  • Modelo recipes
  • Modelo Fighting Spirit
  • Athletic Brewing
  • Rodeo Houston
  • Silver Eagle Bud Light Next
  • Waco CVB
  • EnerGenie
  • HLSR Wine Committee
  • All Hands
  • El Paso
  • Avenida Houston
  • Visit Lubbock Houston
  • JW Marriott San Antonio
  • Silver Eagle Tupps
  • Space Center Houston
  • Central Market Houston
  • Boulevard Realty
  • Travel Texas Houston
  • Alliantgroup
  • Golf Live
  • DC Partners
  • Under the Influencer
  • Blossom Hotel
  • San Marcos Houston
  • Photo Essay: Holiday Gift Guide 2009
  • We Heart Hou
  • Walker House
  • HTX Good Eats 2013
  • HTX Ready to Jingle 2013
  • HTX Culture Motive
  • HTX Auto Awards
  • HTX Ski Magic
  • HTX Wonderful Weddings 2014
  • HTX Texas Traveler
  • HTX Cifford on the Catwalk 2014
  • HTX United Way 2014
  • HTX Up to Speed
  • HTX Rodeo 2014
  • HTX City Centre 2014
  • HTX Dos Equis
  • HTX Tastemakers 2014
  • HTX Reliant
  • HTX Houston Symphony
  • HTX Trailblazers
  • HTX_RealEstateConfidential_2014
  • HTX_IW_Marks_FashionSeries
  • HTX_Green_Street
  • Dating 101
  • HTX_Clifford_on_the_Catwalk_2014
  • FIVE CultureMap 5th Birthday Bash
  • HTX Clifford on the Catwalk 2014 TEST
  • HTX Texans
  • Bergner and Johnson
  • HTX Good Eats 2014
  • United Way 2014-15_Single Promoted Articles
  • Holiday Pop Up Shop Houston
  • Where to Eat Houston
  • Copious Row Single Promoted Articles
  • HTX Ready to Jingle 2014
  • htx woodford reserve manhattans
  • Zadok Swiss Watches
  • HTX Wonderful Weddings 2015
  • HTX Charity Challenge 2015
  • United Way Helpline Promoted Article
  • Boulevard Realty
  • Fusion Academy Promoted Article
  • Clifford on the Catwalk Fall 2015
  • United Way Book Power Promoted Article
  • Jameson HTX
  • Primavera 2015
  • Promenade Place
  • Hotel Galvez
  • Tremont House
  • HTX Tastemakers 2015
  • HTX Digital Graffiti/Alys Beach
  • MD Anderson Breast Cancer Promoted Article
  • HTX RealEstateConfidential 2015
  • HTX Vargos on the Lake
  • Omni Hotel HTX
  • Undies for Everyone
  • Reliant Bright Ideas Houston
  • 2015 Houston Stylemaker
  • HTX Renewable You
  • Urban Flats Builder
  • Urban Flats Builder
  • HTX New York Fashion Week spring 2016
  • Kyrie Massage
  • Red Bull Flying Bach
  • Hotze Health and Wellness
  • ReadFest 2015
  • Alzheimer's Promoted Article
  • Formula 1 Giveaway
  • Professional Skin Treatments by NuMe Express

    Keeping it legal

    Lance Armstrong's discount sale: Unloads his massive Austin mansion for a steep reduction

    Ryan Lakich
    Apr 11, 2013 | 12:54 pm

    It appears that Lance Armstrong’s tour of lawsuits and legal troubles is just beginning — and he is already starting to downsize.

    The disgraced cyclist, who was stripped of his seven Tour de France titles after a drug confession, has sold his lavish Austin mansion. Local oil and gas businessman Al Koehler has taken out a $3.1 million dollar loan to purchase Armstrong's home, according to a report by the Daily Mail. Koehler hasn’t revealed the full amount he paid for the 1.7-acre property, but it’s well short of the $10 million it was listed for by real estate agents.

    Bought by Armstrong in 2004, the 7,850-square-foot mansion has been renovated for several years at a considerable sum by Armstrong and was featured in a 2008 article for Architectural Digest. The house reached wider notoriety after Armstrong invited Oprah Winfrey to tape an interview at it in January, where he confessed to years of using performance-enhancing drugs.

    The sale of the property is expected to assist covering the massive legal fees Armstrong is facing in the coming months.

    The sale of the property is expected to assist covering the massive legal fees Armstrong is facing due to lawsuits from his former sponsor, insurer and teammate.

    Armstrong’s entire fortune — conservatively estimated at $60 million — is at risk as he faces a lawsuit from the U.S. Postal Service, his longtime main sponsor. The government could seek damages that are triple the $30 million it paid to Armstrong.

    Insurer SCA Promotions, which insured his Tour de France bonuses, is also seeking $12 million in damages, although Armstrong’s lawyer asked a state district court in Dallas to dismiss that lawsuit.

    Former teammate Floyd Landis, who was stripped of his own trophies after testing positive for synthetic testosterone use, filed a “whistleblower” lawsuit and seeks to receive damages as an informer if it is ruled that Armstrong did indeed defraud the government.

    While the infamous estate has been sold, a spokesman for Armstrong says that the cyclist will continue to live in Austin. Although there are no further details as of exactly where Armstrong will live, it looks like Austin will still serve as the center of the ongoing legal drama.

    What do you think? Are you sad to see Lance Armstrong have to sell his house? Or is it fitting justice for an admitted sports cheat? Leave a comment and let us know.

    unspecified
    news/real-estate

    most read posts

    Houston chef Tristen Epps dishes on his Top Chef victory — and what's next

    Houston's pioneering South American steakhouse will soon shutter in River Oaks

    Intimate Houston cocktail lounge adds European-inspired outdoor patio

    More Marriott

    Luxurious downtown Houston hotel expands with more rooms and rooftop pool

    Jef Rouner
    Jun 16, 2025 | 1:30 pm
    A computer rendering of the new rooftop lounge and pool area at the JW Marriott Houston Downtown.
    Courtesy of the JW Marriott Houston Downtown
    A render of the future rooftop space at the JW Marriott Houston Downtown

    The JW Marriott Houston Downtown has revealed plans for a massive expansion that will add the adjacent Battelstein’s Building at 812 Main to the hotel's existing footprint.

    With an eye to impress guests coming to Houston for the June 2026 FIFA World Cup, the revitalized Battelstein's Building will include a new ground floor restaurant, additional meeting and events spaces, and a rooftop bar and lounge with a pool overlooking the downtown skyline. It will offer easy access to the planned Main Street Promenade, also set to open next June.

    “This initiative represents an exciting evolution for the JW Marriott Houston Downtown,” hotel general manager Jelle Vandenbroucke said in a statement. “We are not just adding rooms — we are redefining the guest experience by creating a hospitality destination that captures the energy, diversity and sophistication of Houston.”

    When the expansion is complete, the Marriott will have a total of 384 guest rooms (an increase of 56), including 89 suites, touted in press materials as the largest inventory of luxury lodging in the city's core. The expansion also adds 10,000 square feet of meeting space to the Marriott, bringing the total to over 23,000 square feet. Rottet Studio designed the new space, and Los Angeles-based Cole Martinez Curtis & Associates is handling the renovation. Guests should still see plenty of the original materials used in these historic constructions as they explore the Marriott's modern services.

    Built in 1924 to house the titular department store, and raised to 10 stories in 1950 by acclaimed architects Joseph Finger and George Rustay, the Battelstein’s Building is a beloved, if modest, part of the Houston skyline. Philip Battelstein opened his tailor and haberdashery in Houston in 1897 after arriving from Lithuania with almost no money. The store thrived through the post-war years, leading to its iconic expansion, but declined as the 1970s oil boom petered out and suburban shopping malls grew in popularity. The space was frequently vacant after 1980. Southwest Value Partners, the company that owns the hotel's current location, acquired the building in 2022.

    Currently, the JW Marriott occupies another historic Houston location, the adjacent, 22-story Samuel F. Carter Building at 806 Main. When Samuel Fain Carter built it in 1910, it was the tallest building in Houston. Many doubted such a towering structure could actually stand on Houston's famously swampy ground, earning it the nickname Carter's Folly. More than a century later, it remains Houston's first skyscraper. The Marriott welcomed its first guests in 2014.


    A computer rendering of the new rooftop lounge and pool area at the JW Marriott Houston Downtown.
      

    Courtesy of the JW Marriott Houston Downtown

    A render of the future rooftop space at the JW Marriott Houston Downtown.

    downtownhotelsjw marriott houston
    news/real-estate
    Loading...