Hines starts first mass timber office in Texas
Houston-based Hines is jumping into Austin commercial real estate with its first mass timber office project in Texas. T3 Eastside will have 92,000 square feet of office space and 9,200 square feet of residential space.
The project, a Hines eco-minded initiative named for timber, transit and technology, will be developed at 1200 E. 4th St. and include 15 loft-style units with a historical industrial design. Mass timber projects use wood, generally in compressed layers, as structural elements and are seen as more sustainable forms of building.
The Austin project is among 16 T3 office projects for Hines and is the first to be designed with a residential component, according to John Mooz, senior managing director at Hines. The construction method incorporates wood products generated from fast-growing trees.
T3 Eastside, which is accessible to downtown by rail and close to living, dining and entertainment options, is the first project in Austin for Hines in more than 40 years. Several additional projects across various sectors will be
announced in the coming months.
JLL is marketing the space to tenants in creative industries such as technology, advertising, media, information and biotechnology/life sciences. The building will feature areas for collaboration, a rooftop patio, private outdoor balconies for tenants, shared conference space, a fitness center and bike storage.
Austin’s office vacancy rose to 16.9 percent in the second quarter as 1.9 million square feet of office space was completed in the first half of the year, according to JLL. Occupancy was 10.6 percent in the year-ago quarter. Another 4.2 million square feet is under construction in the Austin area.
Hines has developed T3 projects in Minneapolis, Atlanta, Denver, Toronto and Melbourne, Australia.
Fort Bend project kicks off third phase
NewQuest Properties will kick off a third phase of Fort Bend Town Center, a mixed-use development at the Fort Bend Parkway and Texas 6 in Missouri City, next year.
The Houston-based developer has acquired 86 acres for the expansion, which will bring 200,000-square-feet of commercial space and 589 apartments. Andrew Alvis represented NewQuest in the purchase, while CBRE’s Darin Gosda and Todd Casper represented the seller, the estate of John C. Werner.
Sueba U.S.A. Corp. acquired two additional tracts totaling more than 23 acres for the multifamily development. NewQuest will deliver the development-ready land to Sueba in the first quarter of 2023.
The announcement comes on the heels of breaking ground on phase two, which will add 300,000 square feet of retail space anchored by a Cinemark theater in 2023. NewQuest now controls three corners of the intersection, which it began developing in 2007 with a Kroger-based retail center.
Preleasing begins in Regent Square
GID Development Group has begun preleasing the Sterling apartments in the second phase of its Regent Square development in the Montrose area. The 590-unit complex adjoins a collection of retail buildings with outdoor plazas being developed on eight acres at the southwest corner of West Dallas Street and Dunlavy. The initial units will be available for occupancy in December.
The project, designed by Boston-based CBT in collaboration with Houston-based OJB Landscape Architecture, is part of a larger, 24-acre pedestrianoriented development just south of Allen Parkway including the Sovereign, a 21-story apartment tower built in 2015.
Several developments near Buffalo Bayou Park are transforming the Allen Parkway corridor with new spaces to live, dine and shop. Apartment projects are underway at Autry Park, a mixed-use development of Hanover and Lionstone Investments east of Shepherd Drive. Alta River Oaks recently opened at 3636 W. Dallas.
Hughes project opens in The Woodlands
Howard Hughes Corp. has opened Creekside Park The Grove, a 360unit Craftsman-style apartment complex in The Woodlands.
The property, at 8440 Creekside Green Drive, is the company’s second multifamily development in Creekside Park Village Center, a collection of shops, restaurants and services along Kuykendahl. The community incorporates multiple coworking areas, a resortstyle swimming pool with a cabana, a dog park and private yards for the ground-level apartments.
The project opens as demand for apartments in the Houston region has rebounded. Average rents in the Houston area rose by 7.7 percent over the year in July, according to ApartmentData.com.
The local market saw a net increase of 30,584 apartment units leased over the last 12 months, according to ApartmentData.com. It was the biggest boost in demand since 2005.