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HBJ Some buzz about the East End KBR site. A tale of two KBR campuses Plan for Clinton Drive stirs East End interest KBR Inc.’s decision to cancel a West Houston campus and consolidate downtown was the real estate buzz last week. This week, the buzz is about a huge existing inner-city campus KBR will vacate when the company consolidates in the Central Business District. The 138-acre Clinton Drive campus is generally regarded as the largest redevelopment site in close proximity to the downtown area of any major U.S. city. The property just east of downtown is bounded by Clinton on the north, extends to Hirsch on the east, spreads to Buffalo Bayou on the south, and stretches almost to Jensen on the west. The giant engineering and construction company with a total of 3,552 Houston employees is not marketing the property for sale just yet. First KBR will merge the 1,600 employees who work at Clinton Drive with their counterparts downtown. Meanwhile, the company will be conducting an environmental clean-up of the site. Redevelopment may be years away, but anticipation is running high. “It could be a wonderful master-planned residential and commercial development,” says Micheal Palmer, a board member of the Houston East End Chamber of Commerce. He points out that the waterfront site is close to major roadways, has great views of downtown and provides quick access to entertainment and cultural venues. Palmer, a real estate broker with Studley Inc., says land prices in the area have fluctuated from $4 to $13 per square foot over the past five years — making KBR’s site worth anywhere from $24 million to $79 million. He notes that residential development in the area is on hold, which has caused land prices to drop to an unknown level from their peak in 2008. “There are no significant recent sales to point to exact pricing,” Palmer says. “The size of the KBR tract would necessarily suggest a lower value, particularly in light of the change in values related to the former Astroworld site and Union Pacific Hardy Rail Yard.” Alan Atkinson of AVA Ltd., owner of the Americas Plaza mixed-use development near KBR’s site, puts the potential in broader perspective. Atkinson says the Clinton Drive tract is superior in size to the urban waterfront redevelopment projects touted in national real estate publications, which typically range from 20 to 40 acres. He adds that the portion of Buffalo Bayou east of downtown has cleaner water and is wider and deeper than in other areas of town because of its unique history. The bayou was dredged all the way into downtown to allow ships to navigate to Main Street during the city’s infancy. “Its location on the former Ship Channel, Houston’s largest waterway, is a remarkable development opportunity,” Atkinson says. Real estate developers such as Frank Liu of Lovett Homes and Ernie Cockrell of Pinto Realty Partners have been acquiring land in the area for the past few years for future projects. Cockrell says the area is definitely on track for redevelopment. Pinto Realty controls an undisclosed amount of land in the area, but is not expected to act as developer on the tracts. “Our focus is buying outdated industrial land and changing its use,” Cockrell says. “Most likely we would either sell or joint venture.” Reid Wilson, chair of the Urban Land Institute’s Houston District Council, reports positive results from a recent East End bus tour. Wilson say participants were impressed with conditions of the roadways, buildings and atmosphere. “It’s not scary looking,” he says. “There weren’t scary people hanging around.” Adds Wilson: “We went over there and we dispelled a lot of myths.” Cleaning up CONTAmInANTS It will be months before the Clinton Drive employees begin moving downtown. The company must conduct space planning and the new square footage must be renovated before the move. KBR is also working on the environmental clean-up of the 4100 Clinton site, with buildings constructed in the 1970s. The site also has some warehouse space that is either vacant or used as storage. Certain contaminants are present on Clinton Drive as a result of more than 100 years of industrial activity dating back to military operations in the early 1900s, KBR reports. Over the last century the site has been used for painting, sand blasting, auto and equipment fueling stations and heavy equipment maintenance. KBR data shows that chemicals found on the site include metals, trace concentrations of volatile organic compounds and gasoline constituents. KBR — which spun off from oil services giant Halliburton Co. in 2007 — joined the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality Voluntary Cleanup Program in 2004 to enable future redevelopment of the site. Klaudia Brace, senior vice president in administration, says KBR intends to complete the mitigation process before moving forward. “It’s ongoing work,” Brace says. “For any future plans that we have, we need to make sure everything is environmentally sound.”

Just a quick bump for our event. Looks like the weather will be terrific on Sunday. Come on out to the Firehouse Saloon for a day filled with live music, good food, great prizes, and wonderful people. Help us continue to support the children of Texas fire fighters, police, and EMS employees living with and fighting against genetic diseases. Facebook link Hope to see you there!!

I am embarrassed to say it took me several minutes to figure out who you were talking about. Just hit me like a ton of briks. See ya Cecil!

Please help us make Cooper's Quest first visit to Houston a success! We are a non profit organization that raises funds to help disabled children of Texas fire fighters, police, and EMS employees. We help children with a range of problems including disabilities, genetic disorders, undiagnosed disorders or terminal illnesses. We will be hosting a Houston fundraiser music benefit on October 11th. Please help us spread the word! Who: Cooper’s Quest Music Benefit Where: Firehouse Saloon 5930 SW Freeway and Fountainview Houston, TX 77057 When: Sunday October 11Th 2009 2-7pm Why: Cooper's Quest: Working together to build a greater quality of life for children of fire fighters, police and ems living with and fighting against genetic diseases. What: Live Music -Joe K & Ron O -Brandon McDermott Band - www.myspace.com/brandonmcdermottband -Mark Miller - www.myspace.com/markmillerband -The Dragliners - www.myspace.com/thedragliners -Grady Skelton Band - www.myspace.com/gradyskeltonband Silent Auction Raffle -Two Southwest Airlines round trip passes to any SWA city. -Sharp - 32" LCD HDTV. -New 8G ipod nano with video. -Plus much more! Photo Booth– Take the Quest home with a personalized event photo. Barbecue- BBQ will be included in your ticket price! Tickets: -Adults: $15 pre paid from www.firehousesaloon.com events page $20 at the door -Children: 4 and under FREE!4 to 12 - $5 at the door Coopersquest.org http://www.coopersquest.org/_/rsrc/1228248820933/CoopersQuest/Cooper.jpg?height=281&width=420 Cooper Wilson 6/27/07-7/8/09 Cooper\'s_Quest_October_11_smaller.pdf CQ fact sheet.pdf