HOUSTON – (Realty News Report) – The 47-story Texas Tower, one of the tallest skyscrapers currently under construction in the United States, has been topped out.
The 1 million-SF downtown building, under development by Hines and partner Ivanhoé Cambridge, will open in the fourth quarter.
Hines, a global development firm, will be relocating its corporate headquarters into the Texas Tower, leaving the Williams Tower near the Galleria.
With a new workplace paradigm unfolding in the Covid-19 era, the building will be instructive for the real estate development industry in regards to social distancing, air quality and wellness in office environments. The Texas Tower “is being built to the highest standards that Hines has ever developed in Houston, including LEED Platinum, WiredScore and WELL Building Standards,” Hines said in a press release marking the topping out, a traditional event celebrating construction progress.
“We are thrilled to announce Texas Tower’s topping out milestone several weeks ahead of schedule as it coincides with the world beginning to look beyond COVID-19,” said Hines Senior Managing Director, John Mooz. “We are experiencing an uptick in leasing activity as office occupancy increases and retail establishments open their doors to more patrons. With occupant health and wellness at the forefront, Texas Tower remains well positioned to serve our tenants when we welcome them to this revolutionary, new office tower later this year.”
The building is being constructed on the site of the former Houston Chronicle building, on a downtown block bounded by Texas, Milam, Travis and Prairie. In 2015, Realty News Report reported in an exclusive story that Hines was working to buy the Chronicle’s downtown property for more than $50 million. The newspaper moved to the old Houston Post building near Loop 610 after selling the downtown property.
The Chronicle property included a 10-story office building, and a nearby 560-space parking garage on a half-block at Prairie and Milam. Hines is currently building a 46-story residential tower on the parking garage site. And the Texas Tower will sit on the block where the Chronicle newsroom once existed.
Hines, calling the structure ”Houston’s most advanced new building,” said the Texas Tower will feature “unprecedented amenities in the vertically integrated campus, including: a dramatic lobby with cues from the hospitality sector; multiple food and beverage offerings; abundant spaces for networking; public gardens on level 12; and a high-performance fitness center. Ten-foot, full-height windows will allow for an abundance of natural light across the 30,000-SF floor plates and a sophisticated underfloor HVAC system will put comfort choices in the hands of occupants.” Cantilevered bays on each face of the floorplate are surrounded by 3 walls of glass providing opportunities for dramatic internal stairs, atriums and communal spaces, as well as potential access to fresh air and outdoor green space.
“Texas Tower fully embodies the next generation of offices as it anticipates our tenant partners’ evolving needs by addressing what their employees are truly looking for in a future work environment,” said Jonathan Pearce, Executive Vice President, Leasing and Development, Office and Industrial, North America at Ivanhoé Cambridge. “We are proud to be at the forefront of innovation in the built environment to elevate the user experience.”
The Texas Tower was designed by Pelli Clarke Pelli.
The building is placed diagonally on the site resulting in a powerful civic presence and unparalleled view corridors throughout the tower. The building is located across the street from the 75-story JP Morgan Chase & Co tower, which was developed by Hines.
Texas Tower is 40 percent leased with tenants including Hines, Vinson and Elkins and DLA Piper law firms.
Editor’s note: Realty News Report editor Ralph Bivins covered real estate for the Houston Chronicle for a number of years.
March 22, 2021 Realty News Report Copyright 2021
For more about Hines development, check out the book Houston 2020: America’s Boom Town – An Extreme Close Up by Ralph Bivins. Available on Amazon http://tiny.cc/4a2g6y
File: Hines Skyscraper Nears Completion in downtown Houston.
File: (2) LEED Platinum, WiredScore, WELL Building Standards. Hines Skyscraper Nears Completion on Texas Avenue in downtown Houston. John Mooz. Ivanhoé Cambridge.