HOUSTON – Powers Brown Architecture, in a move that reinforces Midtown’s emergence as a preferred locale for Millennial office space, is relocating from downtown to Midtown.
Powers Brown signed an 11,637-square-foot lease at Central Square, which is currently undergoing a renovation. Transwestern’s David Baker and Evelyn Ward negotiated the deal on behalf of the building owner, Claremont Properties.
“The Midtown submarket is currently experiencing robust activity, and we have had extremely high interest in this property,” said Baker. “Powers Brown is a premier architectural firm, and its move to Central Square Plaza is a testament to the vibrant environment and the growing creative and intellectual community in Midtown.”
Located at 2100 Travis St., the property occupies the entire city block bordered by Travis, Milam, Gray and Webster streets in the Midtown submarket, which has Class B office occupancy of 95 percent. The 280,000 SF building has 20,000 SF of first-floor retail .
“We chose the Central Square project because we saw an opportunity to yet again be pioneers in an emerging urban location,” said Jeffrey Brown of Powers Brown Architecture. “We did so 15 years ago in 1999 on the eastern edge of downtown, and we see many of the same opportunities in the Midtown border location. Walkable dining and in some cases upscale food, bars, housing and parks, along with parking and signage on the immediate edge of the Central Business District exists only in the Central Square property, and close proximity to the Houston METRO Rail was also a must for us. By being the first tenants in the building, we are trying to set the bar high by pursuing a wellness certification along with our LEED Certification which are made possible by extremely competitive rent rates.”
The redevelopment is nearly complete with a new curtain wall exterior, five high-speed elevators and upgraded mechanical systems.
Earlier this week, another redevelopment was announced in Midtown by PLC Capital.
PLC Capital acquired the prime Greensheet building at the corner of Main Street and McGowen in the Midtown district, just south of downtown Houston.
The site is across the street from the well-known Superblock Midtown Park parcel and the Camden McGowen Metro Rail Station, noted Houston real estate veteran Fred Ghabriel of Bejjani & Associates, which assisted with the acquisition.
PLC Capital, a Houston-based firm led by Brent Friedman, will redevelop the 56,000- SF Greensheet building, a 60-year-old structure at 2601 Main at Holman.
Friedman said the Greensheet building redevelopment will have 10,000-SF of retail on ground floor and office space on the floors above.
Studio RED Architects, a Houston firm, will design the redevelopment plan of the Greensheet building, embracing the Mid-Century Modern architecture. Built in 1955, the building has “several charming, period-specific, Mid-Century-Modern architectural features which the organizers plan to preserve and incorporate into the updated design,” Friedman said.
June 24, 2016