Houston: A Rarity: New Office Building to be Built

In Houston, Hanover Company and the Local firm plan to develop a six-story office building in the Autry Park project near Buffalo Bayou about two miles west of Downtown Houston.

Construction of office buildings in Houston have been extremely limited in recent years as the city’s vacancy rate rose sharply in the post-Covid environment. Obtaining financing for new office properties has also been challenging as the sector lagged behind as a weak spot in commercial real estate. Only a few small office buildings are currently under construction in Houston.

JLL Capital Markets arranged construction financing and joint venture equity for Autry Park One, a to-be-built, 127,651-SF office property positioned along Allen Parkway, the bayou-fronting roadway that winds its way into downtown Houston.

JLL worked with Hanover Company and LOCAL to line up joint venture equity for the project and separately secure a syndicated construction loan with two regional banks.

The office property will be part of Autry Park, a multi-use development located between Downtown Houston and the upscale River Oaks community. The 14-acre site is currently home to Hanover Autry Park and Hanover Parkview multifamily towers.

When fully built-out, Autry Park will have additional multifamily, office, a hotel and retail uses.

The new office building, called Autry Park One, will offer 116,120 SF of boutique office space plus 10,500 SF of ground floor retail. The building will offer private offices, meeting space, mid-building outdoor decks, an indoor/outdoor rooftop deck, fitness facility and underground parking.

The JLL Capital Markets Debt Advisory team representing the borrower was led by Senior Managing Directors Colby Mueck and Cortney Cole and Managing Director Kevin McConn.

Houston-based Hanover, is primarily known for the high-rise residential towers which it has developed across the nation.

Autry Park development includes the new Hanover Autry Park, a 24-story apartment tower with 324 units at 811 Buffalo Park Drive. Also in Autry Park, Hanover has developer the 8-story, 422-unit Hanover Parkview apartments.