HOUSTON – (Realty News Report) – Skanska, the Stockholm-based development and construction company, has purchased a prominent 2.86-acre parcel at the southwest corner of Westheimer and Montrose Boulevard in Houston’s Montrose neighborhood as part of a major planned development.
Skanska paid $27 million for the property, which currently hosts a 44,000-square-foot retail center anchored by Spec’s liquor store. The company plans to demolish the existing retail center to make way for a high-rise, mixed-use development featuring residential units, street-level retail and restaurants that respond to Montrose’s vibrant urban fabric.
“Montrose is the cultural heart and soul of the city,” said Matt Damborsky, Executive Vice President of Skanska USA Commercial Development in Houston. “This location reflects Houston’s changing urban landscape and underscores our continued commitment to the market. We are always looking for opportunities to broaden our Houston portfolio while creating projects that respect and enhance the local culture and sense of community.”
Skanska has recently been active in Houston. In downtown, the firm completed the 35-story Bank of America Tower, which includes a Michael Hsu–designed food hall called Understory. The Montrose acquisition follows Skanska’s late-2019 purchase of a 3.5-acre assemblage near Discovery Green intended to become the company’s first mixed-use multifamily project in Houston. Earlier speculation that that downtown assemblage might include office towers has cooled amid ongoing uncertainty in the office market and delays to new office construction caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
Montrose’s Mega-Corner
The site Skanska bought is bounded by Westheimer, Montrose, Lovett and Yoakum Boulevard and was acquired from a partnership controlled by Madison Marquette. The property sits two blocks from the former Chinese Consulate building, which was recently closed by the U.S. State Department. Directly across the street from the newly acquired parcel is a Kroger that serves Lower Westheimer and a wide portion of the Montrose corridor extending toward the Museum District.
The neighborhood is seeing additional residential and hospitality investment nearby: a few blocks south, Hines is finishing a 34-story residential tower and the redeveloped La Colombe d’Or hotel. Skanska’s growing Houston presence builds on the company’s broader U.S. and global platform; Skanska USA, with roughly 7,900 employees, has delivered projects such as West Memorial Place I and II in the Energy Corridor, while the larger Skanska organization employs about 35,000 people across the Nordic region, Europe and the United States.
The Montrose project is an example of continued interest in high-quality mixed-use development in Houston’s urban neighborhoods, where strong retail corridors, nearby cultural institutions and increasing residential demand create an attractive environment for thoughtfully designed, community-oriented projects.
Aug. 5, 2020 Realty News Report Copyright 2020
Caption: Skanska demolished the Houston Club building in downtown Houston and constructed the Bank of America Tower. Photo credit: Ralph Bivins of Realty News Report. Copyright 2020.
File: Skanska Buys Montrose Site. File (2) Skanska Buys Montrose Site from Madison Marquette.
