HOUSTON – (Realty News Report) – Simmons & Company International | Energy Specialists of Piper Jaffray leased 31,000 SF at 609 Main at Texas, the new 48-story office tower developed by Hines in downtown Houston.
Simmons, an investment banking and financial advisory firm, will move into the 1,073,075-SF building this fall.
Michael Anderson and Damon Thames with Colvill Office Properties represented Hines in the lease negotiations. Lou Cushman and Tim Relyea of Cushman & Wakefield represented Simmons.
With this lease, 609 Main at Texas stands at over 64 percent leased. Other notable tenants include Kirkland & Ellis LLP, Orrick, Hogan Lovells, McKinsey & Company, Russell Reynolds Associates, and United Airlines.
The 609 Main at Texas building, designed by the Pickard Chilton architectural firm is topped with a diagonal crown that has become a new downtown landmark. The property is pre-registered LEED, and is expected to attain LEED Platinum in the coming weeks.
Amenities at the vertically integrated campus include a “hotel-style” lobby with a café and spaces for networking; a 7,000-SF fitness center and 8,000-SF conference center; full-height windows allowing for an abundance of natural light; an underfloor HVAC system; and private roof gardens.
“It was important to us that we selected a flagship building offering the top amenities for not only our clients but also our employees,” said Simmons Managing Director and Co-head of Energy Investment Banking Fred Charlton.
Hines Senior Managing Director John Mooz added, “Adding one of the largest and most experienced energy investment banking teams in the industry to the tenant roster is truly an honor for the firm.”
Construction of the building began in the summer of 2014, when West Texas Intermediate crude was around $100 a barrel. A decline in oil prices began later that year and it created softness in the Houston office market. Houston office brokers say many companies have been taking advantage of the softer market to upgrade to finer buildings, a trend called the “flight to quality.”
