A new urban living community is being built in North Austin at the intersection of Lamar and Airport boulevards. The idea behind it is for residents to be able to drive less.

Midtown Commons at Crestview Station is being designed around the new commuter rail and the current Capitol Metro bus system. Construction is underway on 60,000 square feet of retail and office space.

"In the retail, we are looking for about four restaurants. We are trying to make it a neighborhood community center. It will have salons, dry cleaners... maybe a bike shop," said Stan Erwin, Trammell Crow Company.

The project also includes about 900 apartment homes and more than 500 single family houses.

Erwin says it will be very pedestrian friendly -- people can just park their car and leave it. "That's what we're hoping. That is what we are hoping for -- less and less dependence on your vehicle and more dependency on alternative forms of travel," he said.

Many people who work at the businesses right across the street from the project are excited about it. They say it should help to bring in new customers and create an economic boost to the entire area.

"I think it will be an incredible boom because they are doing so much over there," said Phil O'Cawvey, Texas Discount Furniture.

The 75 acre lot used to house a chemical research facility.

Brad Maples, a developer with Trammel Crow Company, says workers had to remove about 120 buildings, dig up buried waste and remove all of the contaminated soil.

"Almost two years of work and one year of planning. [I'm] happy that we made that milestone," he said.

The retail area should be finished by November with the first phase of apartments coming later next spring. The whole project is likely to take four to five years to complete.