No-Comply Skate Shop saved from eviction for now, as ACC extends lease

A neighborhood skate shop has been spared the wrecking ball. 

After a public campaign to save their building from demolition, No-Comply Skate Shop on Friday announced that they have reached a deal with their landlord, Austin Community College, to stay in their longtime home at 812 W. 12th St. — “until we find a new home, even if it takes years,” according to an Instagram post.  

“I am excited to announce that ACC has committed to extending our lease here until we find a new space,” No-Comply owner Elias Bingham told the American-Statesman on Friday. “They are not only giving us time to find a new home, they are also committed to helping us find the right place and see the value in working with us and our community on collaborative efforts moving forward.” 

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The college confirmed the news later that afternoon, adding that it would work with No-Comply toward a “long-term solution,” including the possibility of moving the skate shop “into another storefront owned by the college in the area,” according to a statement. 

ACC on Thursday requested the city’s Historic Landmark Commission postpone the demolition permit process for the building. The commission had been set to resume discussion at its Aug. 23 meeting. That request marked a reversal from the college; in a letter to the commission last month, ACC Chancellor Richard M. Rhodes opposed both delaying the demolition permit to consider alternatives and granting the building historic protection. 

According to an agenda posted in advance of the upcoming meeting, city staff will recommend that the commission grant the postponement request.  

"The request to postpone the application process will allow more time for the college to focus its efforts on reaching a mutually beneficial resolution with the owners of the No-Comply skate shop which currently operates out of the building,” a statement from the college on Thursday read. 

Earlier this month, the Statesman reported that ACC filed for a permit to demolish the storefront as part of a long-planned parking expansion for its Rio Grande campus. Though Bingham said he was aware for years that those plans were on the table, he was taken by surprise when the city posted a notice outside his business, indicating that ACC was moving forward with demolition. 

Bingham made a public plea for supporters of the shop and the local skateboarding community to tell the Historic Landmark Commission that they opposed the demolition. ACC needed the approval of the commission before demolishing No-Comply's building, which was built in the 1940s. Experts said it is an example of a once-common style of architecture now largely lost to redevelopment.  

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The city received about 4,000 emails calling for a halt to demolition efforts. At a July 26 meeting of the Historical Landmark Commission, 70 people registered to speak — 68 in opposition of the demolition, two in favor.  

Representatives for ACC called into question the architectural and community value of the building. Supporters of the skate shop insisted that it is a vital hub for the skateboarding community. The commission unanimously voted to postpone action on the site until their Aug. 23 meeting.  

“We heard from ACC — they tried to make a case that there wasn’t a community to have community value, and I think that that’s really kind of short-sighted,” commission chair Terri L. Myers said during last month's meeting. “Although we’re not supposed to be looking at the business itself, obviously we’ve never had this kind of outpouring of support before, for any case that I’ve been aware of.”   

The commission urged ACC and No-Comply Skate Shop to meet and discuss the issue.  

“As a community college, we are committed to doing what is best for the community,” Neil Vickers, ACC executive vice president of finance and administration, said in a statement on Friday. “We have learned a lot about No-Comply and the skateboarding community, and we’re hopeful that this is an opportunity for a lasting partnership. Our goal is to help No-Comply, and there are a lot of options we can look into. Extending the lease for No-Comply gives us all the time we need to do things right.” 

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The skate shop echoed the newfound collaborative spirit. 

ACC now sees “the value in our community and even more so in what we can do together in collaborative efforts moving forward,” an Instagram post from No-Comply reads. “We look forward to working with them and seeing what we can accomplish together.” 

No-Comply Skate Shop has occupied the building since 2008. ACC purchased the site in 2009. Bingham moved his business into the building on 12th Street to be near the Heath Eiland and Morgan Moss BMX Skate Park. No-Comply has become an international attraction for lovers of skateboarding, he said.