Houston Center Gains Tenants

HOUSTON – (Realty News Report) — Brookfield Properties announced that Reed Smith LLP, an international law firm, and APFS Staffing Holdings, a leading professional services firm, have signed leases at Houston Center.

In 2017, Brookfield Properties acquired Houston Center, a collection of four downtown skyscrapers and a 200,000-SF retail center, from J.P. Morgan Asset Management for $875 million. Since then Brookfield has spent approximately $100 million to improve Houston Center which was built decades ago.

With the extensive renovations, Brookfield seeks to keep Houston Center competitive amid downtown’s office vacancy problems.

“We are pleased to welcome Reed Smith LLP and Addison Group to the Houston Center campus,” said Travis Overall, Executive Vice President and Head of the Texas Region for Brookfield Properties.

“These new commitments speak highly of the significant improvements that have already been made to Houston Center and those currently in progress to create a vibrant downtown destination.”

Under the terms of the new lease agreements, Reed Smith LLP will lease 46,626 SF of office space on floors 21 and 22 of LyondellBasell Tower, while Addison Group will lease 24,830 SF of office space on floor 12 of 4 Houston Center.

“Our Reed Smith team is very excited to be moving into LyondellBasell Tower. Brookfield Properties has added exceptional amenities and created a working environment that our people can use and enjoy both inside and outside,” said Ken Broughton, Reed Smith’s Houston Managing Partner.

Reed Smith was represented in lease negotiations by Steve Burkett and Philip Leibow of JLL. Addison Group was represented in lease negotiations by Collin Grimes of CBRE. Brookfield Properties was represented by Doug Little, David Baker, Kelli Gault and Jack Scharnberg of Transwestern.

Houston Center features a dynamic central plaza and greenspace along McKinney Street with an iconic monumental staircase connecting two landscaped terraces. Tenants can also take advantage of the campus’ world-class fitness center, state-of-the-art conferencing venues, welcoming lobby co-working spaces, and stunning outdoor sky deck. In addition, 2 Houston Center and LyondellBasell Tower boast exquisitely designed lobbies.

Renovations to The Highlight at Houston Center and 3 Houston Center are currently underway. When complete, The Highlight will offer a vibrant amenity mix for tenants and visitors alike in the heart of downtown Houston.

Plans for 3 Houston Center focus on the property’s main lobby and include improved pedestrian circulation, new floor and wall finishes, energy efficient lighting upgrades, improvements to the existing conferencing facility, and new furniture and art.

A number of buildings in downtown Houston, including Houston Center’s buildings were built in the 1970s and 1980s. Today, as new buildings are constructed the aging office inventory faces tougher competition. Building owners like Brookfield are faced with a choice – spend heavily to redevelop the buildings to meet the modern space demands of the Millennial generation – or let the buildings decline into Class B status.

File: Houston Center Gains Tenants