Changing Houston

New downtown skyscraper is set to rise: 47-story tower aims to be an iconic Houston landmark

Houston-based Hines, the international real estate firm, will begin work on downtown Houston’s next major skyscraper on Nov. 1.

The building, 609 Main at Texas, will be a 47-story, 1,050,000-square-foot office tower at the corner of Main and Texas streets, with direct access on the Main Street rail line. The site is known as “Block 69.”

Two years ago Hines completed the BG Group Place office tower on Main Street and that building is now 96 percent leased.

Site preparation, including the demolition of an existing abandoned building, will begin the first week of November. Excavation and foundation work will occur in March 2014, and after 36 months of construction, the building will be ready for occupancy, Hines says. (CultureMap first reported on the project back on March 14.)

The Houston office market is exceptionally strong. Two years ago Hines completed the BG Group Place office tower on Main Street and that building is now 96 percent leased.

“609 Main at Texas is a strategic follow-on to our success with BG Group Place,” Hines president Jeff Hines says. “We are thrilled to start construction on our second major office tower on Main Street, especially with our partner, CalPERS. We saw the trend coming several years ago when we purchased two key blocks of land on Main Street, and now our strategy has been confirmed with the start of this iconic new landmark.”

Hines is starting the new tower without an anchor tenant being signed, making the tower what developers call a “spec” project.

“We have already had significant leasing interest among all the sectors that fuel CBD development,” Hines senior managing director John Mooz says. “This project will be a true ‘next-generation’ office building, utilizing best practices we’ve learned from our previous developments in Houston and around the world. While 609 Main at Texas is designed to house multiple firms, there is obviously a significant and prestigious opportunity for an anchor tenant, including options for large trading floors and outdoor space.”

The 609 Main building will be designed by Pickard Chilton, the same architecture firm that designed the nearby BG Group Place tower. The building is expected to have the highly acclaimed LEED Gold or Platinum rating for sustainability and energy efficiency, Hines says.

The building is being developed by Hines CalPERS Green development fund, a partnership with the Hines and CalPers, the nation’s largest pension fund.

The office market is downtown Houston has occupancy rates above 90 percent and, the PM Realty Group reports downtown rents have gone up more than four percent in the last year.

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a sweeter future

City of Sugar Land acquires historic 'Char House' for new development

Photo provided by City of Sugar Land

The Char House is one of the most iconic buildings in Southwest Houston

The Imperial Sugar refinery complex has been gently rotting in the heart of Sugar Land, but a formal purchase of the land and building by the city government promises a chance at new life for the historic building.

Built around 1869, the complex was once a state-of-the-art facility that refined sugar and produced molasses. The City of Sugar Land was named for the company, and the company's crown logo is part of the city's official seal. Thousands of workers manned the lines while Houston schoolchildren toured the floor of the factory until it shut its doors in 2002. Now, the only sugar in Sugar Land is found on grocery store shelves, where the Imperial brand is still sold today.

The City of Sugar Land announced on Wednesday that it had finally completed the official purchase of the 40 acres that the refinery stands on, the first time the city has owned it. Previous plans to develop the property haven't come together.

“Redeveloping the Imperial Historic District has been a longstanding priority for both the City Council and our residents,” Mayor Carol McCutcheon said in a statement. “We’re proud to now be in the driver’s seat — ready to preserve our namesake and create the kind of destination the Sugar Land community deserves. With this project, we hope to create a place that past and future generations are proud of for many years to come.”

The $50 million land purchase and renovation plan includes the iconic Char House. The tall, red brick building looms over Sugar Land and is an iconic structure in Fort Bend County. The name comes from the charring process of adding burnt and powdered animal bones to the refining process. The building, completed in 1925, had to be tall as using gravity to filter the liquid sugar as it left the storage tanks on the eighth floor to the bottom.

The City of Sugar Land is in the process of seeking a private development partner to repurpose and renovate the land and buildings. That process should be completed by first quarter of 2026. In the meantime, the sale will be finalized over the coming months, and the city will begin the process of maintenance to prevent further deterioration. Though it is still some ways in the future, it's possible generations of school children will once again have a chance to visit the industrial genesis of Sugar Land.

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