gintx village

arts / industry / environment

The Future of Development

GinTX Village is a collaborative maker community underway in Elgin, Texas. Founded at the site of the century old Hanke Cotton Gin, GinTX represents the singular vision of leaders in the diverse fields of architecture, art, design, construction, craft, and commerce, with an eye toward sustainable and responsible enterprise.

The Work/Live Studios function as both working and living spaces, eliminating long commutes, with a campus featuring common areas and community gardens to create a welcoming home. The Monarch Urban Habitat Reserve, the Monarch Pavilion and strategically located Monarch Butterfly Way Stations supported by rainwater collection emphasize a collective sense of ecological stewardship and environmental accountability.

The Center for Architectural Craft (CAC) serves as a groundbreaking resource for fostering architectural enterprises by combining the best practices of the past with today’s emerging technologies. Here, CAC mentors with strong backgrounds in business will assist the Enterprise Tenants in reaching a broader audience, further supporting their way of life while improving access to the fruits of their labor.

CENTER for ARCHITECTURAL CRAFT

The CAC combines age-old craft with emerging technologies to synthesize the architectural materials and methods of tomorrow.

MONARCH URBAN HABITAT RESERVE

We are joining a continental movement to provide habitats for migrating monarch butterflies in support of their dwindling populations.

WORK/LIVE STUDIOS

Work from home. Live for your work. Studios combine with residential spaces to maximize access to time and potential.

JOIN US

We invite our neighbors, area educators, future tenants, and makers to participate in our shared venture. Whether you are in Elgin, the surrounding area, or across the pond, we’d love to talk with you about how you’d like to be involved in GinTX Village.

We are building our community one handshake at a time.

Contact Alan Barber to see how you can become involved.

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(512) 294-5090

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alan@gintx.com

The Hanke Gin

GinTX Village offers opportunities for Enterprise Tenants, Makers and Stakeholders to partner in support of the surrounding Elgin community, promoting the benefits of responsible land stewardship and fostering the efforts of local creative industries. Our vision is modeled upon a rich tradition of collaboration as well as an enduring hope for the future, both of which reflect the values of the site upon which the Village is built.

The original gin was situated on 2.9 semi-wooded acres adjacent to historic downtown Elgin, Texas. Built in 1878 and soon after obtained by local pioneer Henry Hanke, the gin operated continuously within the Hanke family until the early 1970s. The crew could turn out as many as 100 bales of cotton a day, separating the seed for agricultural and biochemical use, thus establishing this gin amongst the finest state-of-the-art cotton ginning facilities well into the 20th Century.

Long lauded for its socioeconomic and cultural contributions to the Elgin area, the gin’s gears have remained silent since 1974. In 2014, the property was acquired by the GinTX Village Founders Group from local brothers Richard and Regan Dumbeck. Both the GinTX Village Founders and the Dumbecks shared a common desire to preserve and re-purpose the iconic Hanke Gin and Seed house. The original gin and its surroundings form an ideal location for sustainable industry as well as habitat for our pilot programs: the Work/Live Studios, the Monarch Urban Habitat Reserve and the Center for Architectural Craft.

photo credit: Elgin Historical Association