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Front entrance to music venue in East Austin Red River Cultural District, Empire Control Room.
  • Arts and Culture

Empire Control Room

Our Rally for Arts, Music, & Culture seeks to cultivate Austin’s soul and identity through real estate development projects that retain and create spaces that amplify our shared sense of acceptance and belonging. Secure ownership of two parcels to prepare for venue expansion across both.
Developer / Partners
Heard Entertainment, City of Austin
Project Goals
Securing the site as a long term live music venue, Positioning the location for future capital improvements supporting revenue and audience development.
Key Features
Located in the iconic Red River Cultural District, along Waller Creek in Downtown Austin, Revolving funds for the Austin Cultural Trust.
Arts, Music, & Culture

Empire Control Room: Project Facts

  • Arts and Culture
Location
604 E 7th St. Austin, TX 78701
Contributors
Austin Cultural Trust
Investment
$2.2M pilot loan for site acquisition
Size / Scope
Approximately 15,000 square feet combined (both locations of Empire)
Completion Date / Timeline
Agreement Signed Oct 1, 2024

Why It Matters

The deal ensures that the East Seventh Street club will remain a live music venue for the next 20 years. The agreement delivers ongoing community benefits through guaranteed live music programming, access for local musicians, and partnerships that support education, workforce development, and cultural engagement.
Through a collaborative decision-making process with the Cultural Trust Advisory Committee, Rally Austin provided a loan to Heard Entertainment to support the acquisition of Empire Control Room, ensuring the venue remains locally owned and dedicated to live music use. In exchange for this financing, Heard is required to continue operating Empire as a live music venue, maintain year-round programming, and prioritize local and regional artists.
Quiet Company Band Plays at Empire Control Room
The acquisition of this site secures the long-term presence of one of Austin’s iconic music venues in the Red River Cultural District, at a time when cultural spaces are increasingly vulnerable to displacement. With the property owned by the venue, instead of leasing, Empire is projected to generate cost savings that help stabilize operations as a permanent cultural anchor in downtown Austin—one that has hosted 4,717 events and welcomed 709,344 attendees since 2015.

Project Timeline

  • 2012
    Opening of Empire Control Room

    The opening of Empire Control Room as an indoor live music stage for an intimate show with a max capacity of 350 patrons.

  • 2014
    Opening of Empire Garage

    The opening of Garage, the largest of the Empire stages that can be transformed from an intimate closed space or a large outdoor venue, holding an audience of up to 1,050 patrons.

  • March 2022
    Call for Proposals

    Rally Austin reviews proposals and begins negotiations with Empire as part of the Cultural Trust project process.

  • October 2024
    Pilot Loan Agreement Executed

    Rally Austin inked a deal with Empire Control Room & Garage operators Heard Entertainment, that loaned the company $2.2 million to buy and expand the property.

Project Gallery
Empire Control Room

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