On West 11th Street, the outdoor landscaping at The Watershed uses bricks saved from the University of Texas Main Building, which was torn down in the 1930s. On West Lynn, the pews have been taken out of the former St. Luke's United Methodist Church. At 1211 W. Lynn St., the property that was Sledd Nursery for almost five decades is waiting on its next tenant.
These three buildings have something in common. Each one already worked as a neighborhood meeting place, and each new operator has chosen to keep a specific piece of what was there. Clarksville is getting a new set of third places, and they are being built inside the old ones.
The Watershed went first, and it kept the bricks
The Watershed at 1004 W. 11th St. started serving customers on Sept. 8. Community Impact reported that the owners describe it as "a for-profit community center." Patrick Gartner, who founded the consulting firm Verified Hospitality and once ran beverage programs for MML Hospitality and Nova Hospitality, opened it with partners Austin Berry and Austin Pfiester.
There are two parts to it. Grisette is an all-day cafe. It brews coffee with Figure 8 beans, pours natural wines from producers such as Sylvaine Pataille and Antoine Sanzay, carries beers from Brasserie Fantome to Oxbow, and sells pastries from Texas French Bread and Tiers and Treats. The plan for late-night bites is cheese boards and tinned fish. For a full meal, Claudia Willis Villegas runs the Muy Yum truck on the patio. It serves boards, salads, bowls and sandwiches. The house sandwich comes on sourdough with herbed butter, pesto-chimichurri, avocado, arugula, sun-dried tomato and parmesan.
The building's past shows up in the landscaping. According to Community Impact, property owner Walter Long wanted the site to serve the community. The team is reusing bricks that the original owners saved from UT's Main Building in the outdoor landscaping. The team also plans to weatherize the patio so people can use it all year.
Gartner is putting together a singer-songwriter series. Each show will have an emcee who asks the performers about their songs, so the evening feels more like a conversation than an open mic. The Watershed's website lists these hours:
- Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.
- Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
- Saturday, 9 a.m. to 10 p.m.
- Sunday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
The Watershed is the only one of the three that is open now. It is also the clearest example of what the next two are trying to do.
St. Luke's is next, and the pumpkin patch may come back
For 66 years, St. Luke's United Methodist Church was more than a church on West Lynn Street. Austin Current described it as a place where people voted, dropped their kids off at childcare, posed in the oversized chair on the lawn and bought gourds at the yearly pumpkin patch fundraiser. Membership shrank and repairs got expensive, and the church closed in 2024. The Austin American-Statesman reported that the property sold for just over $4.2 million to Graham Brown Consulting.
First Light Books is the main tenant. The independent bookstore and cafe opened in a former Hyde Park post office in August 2023. It will open its second shop in the church's front sanctuary, and other businesses will take the back of the building. Co-owner Robin Bruce explained the choice to KUT. "At Clarksville is this church that has been a rich part of the community for decades and decades," she said, calling it an "incredible old building, great architecture, great bones, in the middle of a neighborhood that's designed for community."
Bruce also told KUT that the church's yearly pumpkin patch could return. The Clarksville store will be bigger than the Hyde Park original, with a cafe, more titles and possibly more genre-specific sections.
The Statesman reported that a state project filing schedules a $450,000 renovation of about 3,505 square feet. Work runs from Jan. 1 to July 31, 2027, and First Light is aiming to open in fall 2027. On that schedule, this fall is the building's last season sitting empty before construction begins. Co-owner Taylor Bruce summed up what the owners want to bring over from Hyde Park in a press release the Statesman quoted: "books, coffee and wine, a shady courtyard and a beautiful shop can open real connections between people."
Sledd Nursery keeps its name
James and Melissa Sledd opened Sledd Nursery at 1211 W. Lynn St. in 1977. The nursery wound down in early 2026 and held its final sale in mid-May. MML Hospitality bought the property and plans to open its first Greek restaurant there, serving breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Of the three projects, this one keeps the most of its past. Community Impact reported that the restaurant's name will include "Sledd," licensed from the Sledd family. The design will also nod to the nursery with a large collection of live plants and greenery.
The corner already has MML neighbors. The Statesman noted that the group runs Jeffrey's and Josephine House across the street. Clark's, Pecan Square Cafe, Howard's, Rosie's and Swedish Hill are down at Sixth and Blanco. MML has cooked Mediterranean food before at The Peacock in the Austin Proper Hotel. Community Impact put the opening at spring 2027. The Statesman's Old West Austin development tracker, updated in mid-October, gives a wider range of 2027 to 2028.
Where each building stands now
In all three projects, the building stays, the use changes, and one recognizable piece of the old place carries over.
| Building | What it was | What's coming | What carries over | Timing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1004 W. 11th St. | A property its owner wanted turned into a community resource | The Watershed: Grisette cafe and the Muy Yum truck | Bricks from UT's Main Building | Open since Sept. 8, 2026 |
| Former St. Luke's, West Lynn Street | United Methodist church for 66 years, closed in 2024 | First Light Books and cafe in the sanctuary, other businesses in back | The building, and possibly the pumpkin patch | Renovation Jan. to July 2027, opening targeted for fall 2027 |
| 1211 W. Lynn St. | Sledd Nursery, 1977 to 2026 | MML Hospitality's first Greek restaurant | The Sledd name and a garden-style design | Spring 2027 per Community Impact, 2027 to 2028 per the Statesman tracker |
A fourth project on the same stretch of West Lynn is a new building. At the former Nau's Enfield Drug property, Zydeco Development Corp. plans a mixed-use project with condos and retail. The Statesman's tracker lists it as The Westlyn, a proposed five-story building with 27 residences, a $70 million cost and no completion date yet. Over the next few years, the West Lynn corridor will mix restored buildings with new construction.
A Clarksville landmark you can visit this month
The Haskell House opens to visitors twice this month. The Clarksville Community Development Corporation lists free visitor hours there from 1 to 4 p.m. on two Sundays:
- Sunday, Nov. 15
- Sunday, Nov. 29
Check the CDC's events page before you head over, since schedules can change. A November Sunday could start at the Haskell House and end with coffee or a glass of wine at Grisette, which is open until 9 p.m. on Sundays. Next fall, the same route could include a bookstore in the old St. Luke's sanctuary.
If you own an older Clarksville home and are weighing what to keep as you plan its next use, whether that means a thoughtful renovation or a well-prepared sale, Katherine Beckworth would be glad to walk through it with you. Let's Connect.
