| Hilton Austin Airport Hotel History |
In 1998, Landmark Organization, an Austin-based development company, was contracted by the City of Austin to convert an abandoned, three-story 1969 United States Air Force building into a four-Story premier airport conference hotel. Though once slated for demolition, the building had historical meaning to the community due to the important role of the base in previous years and the economic impact the base provided long before Austin's high tech industry came into being. Its distinctive round shape with an open center area caused the building to be dubbed "The Donut." It served as a strategic air command center during the Vietnam War, the Persian Gulf War and Desert Storm. High-level air reconnaissance missions were orchestrated from the command center. The basement areas of the building even featured a reinforced war room. When the base closed, it was an economic loss for the community.
Historical Highlights
The base formerly housed the 67th Reconnaissance Wing, 12th Air Force Headquarters, 12th Tactical Intelligence Squadron, 712th Air Support Operations Center, 10th Air Force Reserve, and 924th Fighter Group.
The building was once the headquarters building for Bergstrom Air Force Base. The Headquarters opened in September 1, 1968 at a cost of nearly $3 million and became know as "The Donut" but the official designation was building 2900. It also carried names such as "The Little Pentagon and the Roundagon."
The Original headquarters building was a circular, three-story structure (two-floor structure on columns) designed by Page-Southland-Page Architect Engineering firm of Austin and built by Stokes Construction Company of San Marcos, under the supervision of the Fort Worth Arym Engineering District.
"The Donut" was 123.210 square feet of floor space, and had an overall building diameter of 312 feet, slightly longer than a football field.
The Original building had 500 windows, almost 20,000 cubic yards of concrete weighing nearly 1,500 tons, 760 tons of steel reinforcing and a 500-ton air conditioning system powerful enough to cool 170 average size homes.
The building wiring, if stretched our, was over 2,700 miles long (long enough to reach from Austin to Seattle, Washington.)
The electrical system was an unusual design to accommodate the circular configuration. Wiring on each floor was contained in a conduit, which ran under the hallway and was connected to rooms by spoke-like tubes under the floor.
The basement under the plaza of reinforced concrete was designed to be made into a secure area if needed. Three guard cages at three entrances to the plaza were made of concrete with bullet-resistant windows.
Bergstrom Air Force Base was one of three Cold War bunkers in the U.S. where the President of the United States could be flown for safety in the event of a nuclear attack.
The military command center below ground was designed like a theatre, with a center room sloping downward toward a stage where presentations were made. In the rear of the room on the highest part of the ground, sat the glass enclosed "Battle Cab". This is where generals held high level talks in privacy.
