Texas Tower: 47-Story Office Tower At 845 Texas Ave.

[hindesky]

These look like elevator hoists.

[cityliving]

[Highrise Tower]

[enriquewx91]

Drove by downtown today, crown of the building is nearly complete. They're fast!

 

Looks really good too

 

(no pic sorry guys)

[cityliving]

[Highrise Tower]

[pacarlson]

I really like the looks of this skyscraper and its location within Houston's downtown skyline.

[Highrise Tower]

Topping out tree went up today. Screenshots from the Hines drone video.

https://www.instagram.com/hines/

[cityliving]

[hindesky]

A few photos from the HouChron topping out ceremony.

[jermh]

 

[kbates2]

So the new article in the Bizjournal makes it sound like the oval room on the bottom floor is more of a building amenity than a public retail space.  Closer to Prelude coffee in 609 Main than a real retail spot. I always thought this was supposed to be part of the building’s contribution to ground floor interaction.  I am afraid this will be another spot open 8 - 5.

[AnTonY]

It looks like the bayou view is starting to take over as the best skyline view of Houston. It has all the new modern towers, along with the historic architecture. Unlike the view from Eleanor Tinsley Park, which is full of ugly outdated 80s buildings.

[H-Town Man]

20 hours ago, AnTonY said:

It looks like the bayou view is starting to take over as the best skyline view of Houston. It has all the new modern towers, along with the historic architecture. Unlike the view from Eleanor Tinsley Park, which is full of ugly outdated 80s buildings.

I wouldn't say they're ugly but the western view does sort of have a dated 80's look, where you only see an array of sleek 70's-80's buildings, whereas the northern/bayou view shows different phases of downtown's history and is more like a traditional city skyline with lots of little buildings in addition to the big ones. I personally prefer the view from due north, coming down I-45, which is kind of the best of both. The western view is still the favorite of Greater Houston Partnership-type promo stuff, since they're trying to attract businesses who want a "clean" city.

 

[Montrose1100]

On 3/24/2021 at 6:48 AM, kbates2 said:

So the new article in the Bizjournal makes it sound like the oval room on the bottom floor is more of a building amenity than a public retail space.  Closer to Prelude coffee in 609 Main than a real retail spot. I always thought this was supposed to be part of the building’s contribution to ground floor interaction.  I am afraid this will be another spot open 8 - 5.

That's a really big shame. I was hoping for a nice restaurant here to admire the street and nearby buildings after dark. But look at the Allen Center, despite the reno, it's still a fortress with one entry to the restaurant after business hours. 

[samagon]

the ramp from 288 northbound to 59 southbound offers a really nice view.

there used to be a view coming up McKinney that I really liked before the Marriott blocked the Gulf building. you'd see the Gulf building, and both halves of the Pennzoil bracketing it, almost in perfect symmetry. of course now, even if the Marriott weren't there, we'd still have the newly finished Capitol (well, 2018, or whatever) tower blocking that shot.

anyway, the view from the bike path on WOB just north of UHD is probably my current favorite:

https://www.google.com/maps/@29.7718233,-95.3638978,2a,75y,186.28h,86.58t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sKne3Xc-Vs7LT1C7dr7qDyg!2e0!6shttps:%2F%2Fstreetviewpixels-pa.googleapis.com%2Fv1%2Fthumbnail%3Fpanoid%3DKne3Xc-Vs7LT1C7dr7qDyg%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D244.84485%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

assuming the i45 realignment occurs, this will be hidden behind freeways.

and to bring it to the building in this thread... from that view, the Gulf building is now hidden behind this tower. lol. sure we can go father up that path to get closer to UHD and then we get to see the Gulf again, but part of what makes that angle good is the way the buildings architecture stands out, the BoA and Pennzoil specifically.

Edited March 25, 2021 by samagon

[Houston19514]

On 3/24/2021 at 6:48 AM, kbates2 said:

So the new article in the Bizjournal makes it sound like the oval room on the bottom floor is more of a building amenity than a public retail space.  Closer to Prelude coffee in 609 Main than a real retail spot. I always thought this was supposed to be part of the building’s contribution to ground floor interaction.  I am afraid this will be another spot open 8 - 5.

From the article:  “On the first floor, Texas Tower will have an oval-shaped “City Room” where workers can grab a cup of coffee or a glass of wine while watching city life as it goes on about its business downtown. Like other first-floor retail spaces in the tower, the City Room will feature 10-foot, floor-to-ceiling windows.”

[AnTonY]

9 hours ago, H-Town Man said:

I wouldn't say they're ugly but the western view does sort of have a dated 80's look, where you only see an array of sleek 70's-80's buildings, whereas the northern/bayou view shows different phases of downtown's history and is more like a traditional city skyline with lots of little buildings in addition to the big ones. I personally prefer the view from due north, coming down I-45, which is kind of the best of both. The western view is still the favorite of Greater Houston Partnership-type promo stuff, since they're trying to attract businesses who want a "clean" city.

 

Yes, anywhere with a northern component allows great view of all of Houston's true density and skyline collection. The northwestern view you describe is also a good frame, especially w/ that "Be Someone" sign. I like the combination of JP Morgan Tower and TC Energy Center front - it creates a somewhat "gothic" aesthetic, and interacts well with 609 Main.

The problem I have with the western shot is how spaced out and uninspiring it makes downtown look. It hides all the interesting buildings and features (including TC Energy Center's front), and makes everything look dated and blocky. One Shell Place and Heritage Plaza had interest construction inspirations and technique, but their executions look quite boring and blocky, unfortunately. They help hold frame from the northwestern view, though.

Yet the Williams Tower is perhaps my favorite building in all of Houston, despite that also being built in the 80s. It still stands out as quite modern even in today's context. The narrowness of the tower probably assists in making it look sleek.

[kbates2]

3 hours ago, Houston19514 said:

“where workers can grab a cup of coffee or a glass of wine while watching city life as it goes on about its business downtown”

Yeah that’s not what I was hoping for at all.

[H-Town Man]

13 hours ago, AnTonY said:

Yes, anywhere with a northern component allows great view of all of Houston's true density and skyline collection. The northwestern view you describe is also a good frame, especially w/ that "Be Someone" sign. I like the combination of JP Morgan Tower and TC Energy Center front - it creates a somewhat "gothic" aesthetic, and interacts well with 609 Main.

The problem I have with the western shot is how spaced out and uninspiring it makes downtown look. It hides all the interesting buildings and features (including TC Energy Center's front), and makes everything look dated and blocky. One Shell Place and Heritage Plaza had interest construction inspirations and technique, but their executions look quite boring and blocky, unfortunately. They help hold frame from the northwestern view, though.

Yet the Williams Tower is perhaps my favorite building in all of Houston, despite that also being built in the 80s. It still stands out as quite modern even in today's context. The narrowness of the tower probably assists in making it look sleek.

I agree with everything you said, except that the "northwestern" view we both like is really due north; if you were actually to the northwest of downtown, you would be looking at Heritage Plaza, etc. straight on and it would have the dull, spaced out look that you're talking about. 

 

Edited March 26, 2021 by H-Town Man

[Response]

Fascinating. 

[cityliving]

[monarch]

https://www.bizjournals.com/houston/news/2021/03/23/hines-tops-out-texas-tower.html?ana=TRUEANTHEMTWT_HO&csrc=6398&taid=60601b6ae25ade0001608dd8&utm_campaign=trueAnthem%3A+Trending+Content&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=twitter

Look inside Hines' 47-story Texas Tower in downtown Houston

Houston-based Hines celebrated the topping out of the 47-story Texas Tower in downtown Houston on March 22, marking a significant milestone for one of the largest office projects in recent years.

When it is completed later this year, Texas Tower will encompass more than 1.14 million square feet of office space at 845 Texas Ave. Hines is developing the project as a joint venture with Montreal-based Ivanhoé Cambridge, and Providence, Rhode Island-based Gilbane Building Co. is the general contractor.

“We wanted a building that really spoke to our history of innovation that provides a five-star hospitality environment where our occupants can find a diversity of experiences,” Hines Senior Managing Director John Mooz told the Houston Business Journal during a March 22 hardhat tour of Texas Tower.

Designed by New Haven, Connecticut-based Pelli Clarke Pelli, the tower will include a number of features that aim to “bring the vibrancy of downtown Houston into the building,” Mooz said.

For one thing, Texas Tower is positioned at a 45-degree angle on the block bounded by Texas Avenue and Milam, Prairie and Travis streets, which allows the building to have views of the city’s skyline that would not be possible if it were sitting square on the parcel. That positioning also gives Texas Tower impressive views of Hines’ other major development projects in the northwest quadrant of downtown, including the 609 Main at Texas office tower and the company’s multifamily towers, the existing Aris Market Square at 409 Travis St. and future Brava at 414 Milam St.

“The idea was to allow Texas Tower to have a conversation with the other buildings in the area, which also expands the sightlines tenants have from inside the building,” Mooz said.

To take advantage of those sightlines, Texas Tower’s design also includes “pop-out” areas on each floor, which provide not only additional flexible work areas but also additional corners with 180-degree views of the city.

“That’s something we’ve learned from the past several cycles,” Mooz said. “These days, it’s not just the boss sitting in the corner office with the best views. There’s been a democratization of space, where more and more tenants are using corner areas for collaboration spots, and some are even putting their lunch areas there. We wanted to find a way to put as many corners as possible to give occupants the ability to maximize those opportunities.”

Those pop-out areas come standard on nearly all of Texas Tower’s 30,000-square-foot floor plates and help to promote wellness and positive morale, Mooz said.

In many ways, Mooz said, the Covid-19 pandemic has illustrated the importance of some of the decisions Hines made during the design process.

Not only do tenants want a variety of different flex spaces where their workers can set up shop, they want access to green spaces, Mooz said. Even before the pandemic, Hines was seeing the growing demand for green spaces within an office environment.

“When we built 609 Main, we included a garden terrace, which was a highly desirable amenity,” Mooz said. “But that terrace was only able to be accessed by a single tenant. In Texas Tower, we included two garden terraces on the 12th and 13th floors that can be accessed by all of the building’s occupants.”

Adding to the hospitality-inspired design of the building are a number of features that aim to bring as much natural light into the building as possible.

On the first floor, Texas Tower will have an oval-shaped “City Room” where workers can grab a cup of coffee or a glass of wine while watching city life as it goes on about its business downtown. Like other first-floor retail spaces in the tower, the City Room will feature 10-foot, floor-to-ceiling windows.

Mooz said Hines recently entered into a deal with a first-in-Houston food and beverage company that has agreed to move into Texas Tower, though he declined to name the company. Office tenants that have already inked leases in the tower include Vinson & Elkins, DLA Piper and Hines itself. The building is already 40% leased.

To maximize the amount of retail space in the building, Mooz said Hines decided to move the building’s central HVAC plant and transformers to the 11th floor, rather than having it on the first floor as in most office towers.

“If you put the central plant on the first floor, you lose about 30% of the available space,” Mooz said. “For us, it made much more sense to move it to the 11th floor because that allowed us to design the first floor in a way that really embraced the surrounding area.”

On the HVAC front, Hines is again going with an under-floor system, which Mooz said moves air through the building much more efficiently and less expensively than traditional systems. The system in Texas Tower is similar to the one Hines installed at 609 Main at Texas.

“This system adds about $10 per square foot to the project, but we have found that our occupants really like it because it is less expensive over time and allows for more flexibility in configuring each office space,” Mooz said.

That flexibility is important in attracting tenants, Mooz said and pointed to Hines’ own office space in the building as an example. Hines will occupy six floors, which will be connected via internal staircases.

“Again, it’s all about creating spaces that can adapt to each occupant’s needs,” Mooz said.

Other amenities in the building will include a 9,500-square-foot fitness center, a 13,000-square-foot conference center, touchless entry systems that rely on Bluetooth technology to access elevators, concierge service and an 11-story garage with 1,500 parking spaces.

Mooz said he’s pleased with the lease-up rate at Texas Tower, which is ahead of schedule, even amid an office market that was already struggling prior to the outbreak of Covid-19.

As Los Angeles-based CBRE recently reported, the office vacancy rate in Houston’s central business district stood at 23.2% during the fourth quarter of 2020.

“We think we will be offering a best-in-class building that truly meets the needs of modern employers, especially in the post-Covid world,” Mooz said. “We have learned a lot during the pandemic from our experience building properties all over the world, and we have factored those lessons into what we’re doing here at Texas Tower.”

 

[hindesky]

Taken from Roy St. in the lower Heights by reddit u/Odlavso. Apparently a truck carrying luxury cars got high centered on the tracks and a train t-boned the trailer. Traffic is supposed to really bad in the area.

Edited April 2, 2021 by hindesky

[jmitch94]

Oof that’s a Ferrari rim I spy. 

[Response]

Diggin' those fins. 

[hindesky]

Those fins add at least 2 stories to the building.

[Highrise Tower]

[hindesky]

I counted 8 of these on the ground on the north side, some weigh 6700lbs and the some weigh 6600 lbs they were a few that were even smaller behind these. I wonder if they are part of the roof top fins or something else.

 

[cityliving]

[hindesky]

From one of the tower crane operators, best views in town.

[Urbannizer]

 

[Highrise Tower]

$32 million tenant improvements.

[hindesky]

From the tower crane operator.

[Highrise Tower]

[hindesky]

[hindesky]

[cityliving]

Edited April 22, 2021 by cityliving

[hindesky]

[hindesky]

First time seeing white on one of the ceilings of the patios.

[Nate99]

[Montrose1100]

4 hours ago, Nate99 said:

The real problem with this structure is that the fins should be angled higher and the overall height should be tripled. 

[Nate99]

16 hours ago, Montrose1100 said:

The real problem with this structure is that the fins should be angled higher and the overall height should be tripled. 

 

[H-Town Man]

8 minutes ago, Nate99 said:

 

It's insane that the Burj dwarfs the Eiffel tower by that much.

 

[Nate99]

4 hours ago, H-Town Man said:

It's insane that the Burj dwarfs the Eiffel tower by that much.

 

I didn't realize the Eiffel tower was the tallest structure in the world (until surpassed by the Chrysler Building), for whatever reason, I assumed it was shorter than it is. 

[KirbyDriveKid]

5 hours ago, H-Town Man said:

It's insane that the Burj dwarfs the Eiffel tower by that much.

 

Actually, Tolkien preferred to use "dwarves"

 

:)

[H-Town Man]

24 minutes ago, KirbyDriveKid said:

Actually, Tolkien preferred to use "dwarves"

 

:)

Hahaha, but only as a plural noun...

 

[Tumbleweed_Tx]

someone on SSP made me a picture a long time ago for a building in Japan... It had Godzilla in it for comparative height  :)

[hindesky]

[Highrise Tower]