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Brookfield Expanding In Downtown


jt16

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I doubt they would take the risk on something very tall, but with the high-profile it should at least be architecturally distinctive. Since that side of the skyline gets great lighting at sunset, I would like to see something almost prismatic looking, like the Hearst Tower in New York.

Hearst01_t346.jpg

I agree with Subdude in theory but as for his example, I don't particularly care for the Hearst Tower. The criss crossing lines actually take away from the shape of the building, IMO. Makes the facade look too busy and you end up getting distracted.

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I agree with Subdude in theory but as for his example, I don't particularly care for the Hearst Tower. The criss crossing lines actually take away from the shape of the building, IMO. Makes the facade look too busy and you end up getting distracted.

Yeah, it seems pretty cool, but it doesn't blend in well with the surrounding buildings. It might be better off if it was just standing alone. I wouldn't want to see something like that at the forefront of our skyline.

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  • 9 months later...

Since this was the only topic I could find that was dedicated to Brookfield's Gateway Tract, I figured I'd post it here.

It was briefly mentioned in this article (publicly viewable in a few days)

It's planned to be 50 stories, still all glass and working for LEED Gold certification. It won't be built until it is 50% leased.

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50 stories? Seems a bit large especially given the current story in the HBJ that there are 3 new office towers planned for downtown (or did I miss the point that this is one of them?)?

Well the more that get built the better as that will drop rental rates in DT.

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50 stories? Seems a bit large especially given the current story in the HBJ that there are 3 new office towers planned for downtown (or did I miss the point that this is one of them?)?

Well the more that get built the better as that will drop rental rates in DT.

It's mentioned in addition to the three towers in the article (MainPlace, Discovery Tower, 6HC). As I mentioned before, the entire article should be viewable in a few days, though that's the bulk of what was said about the project in question.

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perhaps... :ph34r:

I'm guessing maybe you've seen a rendering, and if you have, I must know, is it west wall worthy? This building is going to be out there in front, for all to see, on pretty much the most photographed side of downtown. Would be a shame if it's another effing box.

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Seems as if Brookfield has done the smart thing and "merged" their two proposals. They first came out with a 35 to 42 story tower for 1500 Smith Street. Then the news leaked about a smaller tower on the "gateway" parcel. Seems as if they are now focusing all their leasing efforts on one tower (the better/more visible parcel) which makes sense.

A poster about a year ago mentioned Devon Energy. They are growing quickly. So quickly that they've announced a new 37 story tower for their home in Oklahoma City. That would make it the city's tallest. Seems as if they'd be a perfect fit for a 50 story trophy tower in an area they are already familiar with (Allen Center).......

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Seems as if Brookfield has done the smart thing and "merged" their two proposals. They first came out with a 35 to 42 story tower for 1500 Smith Street. Then the news leaked about a smaller tower on the "gateway" parcel. Seems as if they are now focusing all their leasing efforts on one tower (the better/more visible parcel) which makes sense.

A poster about a year ago mentioned Devon Energy. They are growing quickly. So quickly that they've announced a new 37 story tower for their home in Oklahoma City. That would make it the city's tallest. Seems as if they'd be a perfect fit for a 50 story trophy tower in an area they are already familiar with (Allen Center).......

I think any earlier discussion of a proposed height for the gateway site was just speculation based on the 700,000 square foot size stated on Brookfield's website (reasonable speculation, but speculation nonetheless). FWIW, the Brookfield website still says 700,000 square feet.

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While the speculation may have been true, I would doubt this 50 story bldg would only contain 700,000 square feet. That would result in 14,000 square foot floor plates and that would never fly in today's CLASS A market. This is why I am assuming the two Brookfield projects have merged into one and that their website hasn't been updated (but potential leasors have).

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While the speculation may have been true, I would doubt this 50 story bldg would only contain 700,000 square feet. That would result in 14,000 square foot floor plates and that would never fly in today's CLASS A market. This is why I am assuming the two Brookfield projects have merged into one and that their website hasn't been updated (but potential leasors have).

I understand your logic and agree with it. (But, we're also assuming that the journalist got it right when they wrote that 50-story thing, not something I would bet money on...)

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I understand your logic and agree with it. (But, we're also assuming that the journalist got it right when they wrote that 50-story thing, not something I would bet money on...)

Journalist? Isn't the 50-story straight from the website?

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Nope. Don't think so.

You're right. It says 50 for the existing 1400 Smith, which by the way is 1,267,000 sqf = about 25,000 sqf/plate. Their site says 25-30k plates for 1500 Smith, which the math says...

800,000 total

- 32 floors for 25k/plate

- 26/27 floors for 30k/plate

1,000,000 total

- 40 floors for 25k/plate

- 33ish floors for 30k/plate

Not that yall needed that. Guess it's just for me. But per their numbers, I guess we're looking at something anywhere between 26-40 floors?

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You're right. It says 50 for the existing 1400 Smith, which by the way is 1,267,000 sqf = about 25,000 sqf/plate. Their site says 25-30k plates for 1500 Smith, which the math says...

800,000 total

- 32 floors for 25k/plate

- 26/27 floors for 30k/plate

1,000,000 total

- 40 floors for 25k/plate

- 33ish floors for 30k/plate

Not that yall needed that. Guess it's just for me. But per their numbers, I guess we're looking at something anywhere between 26-40 floors?

1500 Smith is a different project. The one they are apparently concentrating on, and that we are discussing in this thread is their "Gateway" site.

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While the speculation may have been true, I would doubt this 50 story bldg would only contain 700,000 square feet. That would result in 14,000 square foot floor plates and that would never fly in today's CLASS A market. This is why I am assuming the two Brookfield projects have merged into one and that their website hasn't been updated (but potential leasors have).

Potential leasers have been updated? Is this personal knowledge? It looked like you were talking about the website being updated with this info, but I don't see anything and I'd doubt they'd even post something like that.

1500 Smith is a different project. The one they are apparently concentrating on, and that we are discussing in this thread is their "Gateway" site.

gotcha, my bad. I was bein lazy.

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Potential leasers have been updated? Is this personal knowledge? It looked like you were talking about the website being updated with this info, but I don't see anything and I'd doubt they'd even post something like that.

No insider knowledge at all. Just trying to use some common sense since their website hasn't been updated. I am totally guessing that they are now focusing their attention on the trophy site (gateway) but are making the building much larger and scrapping plans to try and market 2 buildings simultaneously. Brookfield was the first to "announce" but have now fallen behind Hines (Main Place), Crescent (6 Houston), and Trammell Crow (Discovery). They were the only developers of the 4 who said they wouldn't start without pre-leasing. That means they've been shopping something to prospective tenants and I would imagine that there is a rendering out there showing a 50 story, glass enclosed, LEED Certification seeking tower in one of the last, most visible plots of land in downtown.

The one ace they seem to hold is Devon Energy. That company currently leases in one of Brookfield's Allen Center towers. It's widely known in real estate circles that Devon is looking for more space. I would imagine that a trophy tower that would make a significant impact on the skyline and could "NEVER" be blocked from the Western view would be appealing to Devon. It would also likely be appealing since their employees know the area and they know the landlord. Of course, what we don't know is if Hines, T-C, and Crescent have made plays to land Devon. If any of them have and they're able to land Devon in their new towers, it is likely that the 50 floorer wont ever make it out of the ground.

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No insider knowledge at all. Just trying to use some common sense since their website hasn't been updated. I am totally guessing that they are now focusing their attention on the trophy site (gateway) but are making the building much larger and scrapping plans to try and market 2 buildings simultaneously. Brookfield was the first to "announce" but have now fallen behind Hines (Main Place), Crescent (6 Houston), and Trammell Crow (Discovery). They were the only developers of the 4 who said they wouldn't start without pre-leasing. That means they've been shopping something to prospective tenants and I would imagine that there is a rendering out there showing a 50 story, glass enclosed, LEED Certification seeking tower in one of the last, most visible plots of land in downtown.

The one ace they seem to hold is Devon Energy. That company currently leases in one of Brookfield's Allen Center towers. It's widely known in real estate circles that Devon is looking for more space. I would imagine that a trophy tower that would make a significant impact on the skyline and could "NEVER" be blocked from the Western view would be appealing to Devon. It would also likely be appealing since their employees know the area and they know the landlord. Of course, what we don't know is if Hines, T-C, and Crescent have made plays to land Devon. If any of them have and they're able to land Devon in their new towers, it is likely that the 50 floorer wont ever make it out of the ground.

You are almost certainly correct about their likely having renderings they are marketing to potential tenants. And I think we can safely presume that all of Hines, T-C, and Crescent have or are making plays to Devon.

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We received a call a few months ago asking if we were interested in moving into 6 Houston. Crescent is our client and they use to be our building management until they sold 5 Houston to Wells Reit (I will hold my tongue about their management style...as they are our client as well)

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