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Popular South Austin wedding venue Mercury Hall to close due to high property taxes

A Mercury Hall partner said their property taxes have tripled over the last five years.

AUSTIN, Texas — Merc Properties, Ltd. announced Friday that they will be closing Mercury Hall, a popular South Austin event space off South First Street, due to high property taxes.

According to Mercury Hall's website, the venue will remain open during current ownership until June 2021 and all events between now and then will proceed as scheduled. Mercury Hall said brides and event planners who book the venue between now and June 2021 are assured all reservations will be honored.

"As partners, we could not be more pleased with the success of Mercury Hall," Daryl Kunik, a Mercury Hall partner, said. "We have really been proud to own and operate such expansive green space in the heart of the city. Unfortunately, our property taxes have tripled over the past five years, and it is becoming clear that an event venue is not a viable use on a property of this size and central location. We have held on for as long as we can and are taking time to find new owners who will be excellent stewards for this beautiful piece of land."

Over the past twenty years, people have cheered, toasted, and said "... I do" thousands of times at Mercury Hall, and it's been a privilege to be part of so many cherished occasions and memories. With this in mind, it is with heavy hearts that we share the news that Mercury Hall plans to hold its last event at the end of June 2021.

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Merc Properties, Ltd. purchased the almost four acres of land and the whitewashed church in 2005.

Mercury Hall has acquired numerous accolades, including "Best of Weddings" from The Knot and "Austin's Finest Wedding Professionals" from the Austin Wedding Guide and it has been regularly voted one of Austin's "Best Wedding Venues" by The Austin Chronicle's Reader's Poll. The venue hosts almost 300 events per year, according to its website.

As a "thank you" to the Central Texas community, Mercury Hall's management team will be raffling off one date per month to a local nonprofit at 75% off or $50 an hour. From January 2020 until March 2021, interested groups may email Venue Manager Courtney Landers to enter. Each month a winner will be drawn, and the winners will be able to pick an open date on the venue's calendar between the date they won and the following three months.

"Mercury Hall has touched a lot of lives, and we want that to live on in some way," Kunik said.

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