HOUSTON – Novare Group announced it has broken ground on SkyHouse residential high-rise project on Main Street in downtown Houston.
The 24-story building will be located across the street from Novare’s recently completed SkyHouse Houston.
The new building, called SkyHouse Main, 1725 Main, will be a 336-unit project on a block bounded by Main, Fannin, Pease and Jefferson. Equity financing is being provided by Batson-Cook Development, and debt financing is being provided by Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp.
Veteran Houston developer Pete Dienna of DNA Partners, is a partner in the project with Novare and Batson-Cook Development Co, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Kajima USA.
The project is part of the city’s successful Downtown Living Initiative, which provides developers with a $15,000 per unit tax break, in order to stimulate a 18-hour a day downtown atmosphere. Hines, Marvy Finger and Camden are also developing downtown residential projects.
The new SkyHouse Main will 7,200 square feet of street-level retail space.
Novare said the project is targeting next-generation professionals who are choosing to live in urban centers close to public transportation, employment centers and cultural institutions.
”We are excited to once again join our local partner Peter Dienna and Batson-Cook Development Company as we begin our the second tower in downtown Houston,” said Jim Borders, President of the Atlanta-based Novare Group. “The market has responding well to the central business district location, public transit access, rooftop amenity package, and exciting city views of SkyHouse Houston. The next step is the critical mass of residents who will create a great neighborhood, which is the vision of the City of Houston and Central Houston, Inc.”
The project is within walking distance of more than 40 million square feet of office space, the Toyota Center, Minute Maid Park and BBVA Compass Stadium. The project will be steps from the Bell Station Metrorail stop.
The general contractor is Batson-Cook Construction Co. and architecture is by Smallwood, Reynolds, Stewart, Stewart.
SkyHouse Main is the 14th SkyHouse-branded apartment community in the United States following projects in Dallas, Houston, Austin, Atlanta, Tampa, Orlando, Charlotte and Raleigh. The program represents more than $1 billion in new construction since its inception in 2012.
The project will generate more than 500 temporary construction jobs and about 50 permanent jobs when finished, Novare said.
Novare Group is a real estate development and investment company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, consisting of several investment and operating companies, including Novare Group Holdings, LLC, NGI Investments, LLC, Novare Events, LLC, HomeOwners Advantage, LLC, and TWELVE Hotels and Residences, LLC.