HOUSTON – (Realty News Report) – Dart Interests has appointed Colliers to manage leasing for Republic Square, a newly renovated 301,000-square-foot office building in the Energy Corridor.
The 35-acre campus originally served as the Exxon Chemical headquarters and was sold to a Dart Interests affiliate in 2013.
Republic Square, located at 13501 Katy Freeway, will be marketed by Blake R. Virgilio and Bill Insull of Colliers’ Houston Agency Leasing Group. “We look forward to announcing future improvements that will continue to enhance the campus as Houston’s ideal place to Office in the Park,” said Virgilio.
Adjacent to Terry Hershey Park
Set on a wooded campus, Republic Square borders Terry Hershey Park, which suffered significant flooding during Hurricane Harvey in 2017.
The renovated office campus now features modern conference facilities, a fitness center, and an open lobby that brings abundant natural light and views of the central lake. The adjacent park offers extensive hike-and-bike trails that complement the campus’ park-like setting.
An affiliate of Dart Interests acquired the former Exxon Chemical site roughly eight years ago for about $70 million. At the time, Exxon was consolidating many of its Houston operations into a new, roughly 3 million-square-foot campus in Springwoods Village. As Exxon moved operations north, it began selling a number of Houston properties, including its downtown tower at 800 Bell and the green, park-like Exxon Chemical campus west of Eldridge.
Major Mixed-Use Vision
Third Palm, a Dart affiliate, envisioned Republic Square as part of a large mixed-use redevelopment that could include additional office buildings, retail, multifamily residential, and hotel components. When the purchase closed, the Energy Corridor enjoyed Class A office occupancy well above 95 percent and was regarded as one of the strongest office submarkets nationally.
Later, however, global oil-market shifts in late 2014 and subsequent industry retrenchment led to rising vacancy across the Energy Corridor. Conditions were further challenged by Hurricane Harvey in 2017, when heavy rains and reservoir releases caused widespread flooding in surrounding neighborhoods.
The pandemic and continued softness in the energy sector delivered another blow to Houston’s office market in 2020, contributing to an elevated citywide vacancy rate. Colliers reported citywide vacancy at 22.3 percent during that period.
Signs of a Houston Rebound
By 2021, as COVID-19 vaccination programs advanced, sentiment began to improve. “There is now light at the end of the tunnel,” Virgilio wrote in a Colliers commentary. He noted increased highway traffic, a revival of social activity, and major employers beginning phased return-to-office plans starting in May and continuing through the summer.
April 21, 2021 Realty News Report Copyright 2021
Photo courtesy Colliers
For readers interested in Texas real estate: the book Houston 2020: America’s Boom Town – An Extreme Close Up by Ralph Bivins covers local market trends and perspectives.
File: Colliers Leading Republic Square’s New Leasing Program