Someone (Realty News, I think) gave a summary of the 17 million sf of new space under construction. Supposedly there are lease commitments for all but 7.5 million sf, which surprised me, as it means 10 million sf have been pre-leased. Some of the buildings won't be delivered for 2-3 years. Is 7.5 million sf of uncommitted new space going to tank the market, or is another shortage looming a couple of years down the road?

Johnny Steele Dog Park at Buffalo Bayou: Grand Opening

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Johnny Steele Dog Park Grand Opening by Arie on Flickr

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Johnny Steele Dog Park Grand Opening by Arie on Flickr

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Johnny Steele Dog Park Grand Opening by Arie on Flickr

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Johnny Steele Dog Park Grand Opening by Arie on Flickr

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Johnny Steele Dog Park Grand Opening by Arie on Flickr

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Johnny Steele Dog Park Grand Opening by Arie on Flickr

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Johnny Steele Dog Park Grand Opening by Arie on Flickr

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Johnny Steele Dog Park Grand Opening by Arie on Flickr

BHP Billiton

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2015 Chevron Houston Marathon by Arie on Flickr

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2015 Chevron Houston Marathon by Arie on Flickr

Elan Heights: By jstigall on HAIF

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-y..._134504542.jpg

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-q..._134507687.jpg

There was some activity on the site of Market Square Apartments yesterday when I was passing by!
https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7513/...ff06d133_b.jpg

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8562/...b884d165_b.jpg

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8676/...12cd3ceb_b.jpg

To put in perspective, this is the largest downtown boom since the 80s.

One Market Square is not dead. They just started it. See Michi's photos above...

Please correct me if I am wrong. It appears Michi, houston19514 and Urbannizer are referring to two different developments.

I'm aware of that. This is certainly a big boom for downtown Houston. But the ratio of only 6 of the city's 29 under construction buildings over 200 feet being in downtown seems low to me and I wish that more of those were being built in downtown.

You are correct. Michi posted photos of the Residences at Market Square, which just started construction. One Market Square is the office tower that used to be known as International Tower. Most believe that that one is dead.

I believe that One Market Square may NOT be dead. I believe that it just might be a large delay of construction.

Allen Parkway Improvements:

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8577/...a8cc5a76_b.jpg

Good news. Happen to have a link for further reading? I'm a big fan of the Buffalo Bayou upgrade but they really need to do a better job of connecting it to the neighborhoods and offering more parking. I can't imagine where all those people parked for the dog parking opening.

I walked.... hehe :D

I'm used to it by now. Sticking everything tall downtown used to be a fantasy of mine but my will has been broken and now I just see it as passé. I'm all for density but being atop an especially tall highway intersection or building at a viewpoint where many of Houston's various skylines seem to connect to create one mega skyline always excites me more than just seeing the solid mass that downtown is as I approach it.

Skyhouse River Oaks: 1/20 by ahkelly

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Given Swamplot's statement, the Hines Market Square project is definitely underway.:cheers:

But a project deferred is a project dead.

Hotel Alessandra: New design, very unfortunate...

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7550/...35d4e9d5_b.jpg

Ugh. I guess all the investment is going to be in the interior.:slob:

Wow. You're right, this is very unfortunate :(

WTH??? This is way beyond ridiculous. :yuck: :hell: :pissed:

I was very afraid of that and that looks terrible.:(
Wish construction started on it last year.

Do You have a link? This looks excellent.

So this
https://o.twimg.com/2/proxy.jpg?t=HB...gU1wbhJni1eMgo

Became this
https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7550/...35d4e9d5_b.jpg

This is very disappointing and a little shocking.

^ HA! I knew something like that was going to happen. I would have been VERY surprised if that swoopy style would have been finalized. Houston developers like boxy designs. I could see the previous design going up unchanged in Dallas where they are more daring with their architecture but not here.

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7528/...b79b1ca2_b.jpg

http://www.bizjournals.com/houston/b...orward-on.html

at least the new design for Hotel Alessandra isn't THAT bad... it could be MUCH worse!

Yeah. It could have became another 5-floor stick frame structure. Oh well. It's better than what currently exist.

I can't. The most daring building is the pointy-top skyscraper that was built downtown almost 30 years ago. They are good for laser light shows, but architecturally...

Fountain Place?

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7560/...b2b14a37_b.jpg

http://www.bizjournals.com/houston/m...an-200-in.html

That looks awesome! But let's not forget that this is Houston where it is tradition to design something cool with the express purpose of not building it. So my money is that we will see a revision to the design soon to where it will ultimately look like this;

http://blog.chron.com/primeproperty/...es-600x408.jpg
http://blog.chron.com/primeproperty/...es-600x408.jpg

And such will be the fate of that giant swimming hole they want to build east of Downtown.

That's the name.

Well, 2015 may be slow, but 2014 was a great year:

City building permits set record in 2014

So Zillow says real estate won't feel the effects until late in the year:

Dip in housing won't be immediate

http://ww4.hdnux.com/photos/34/24/31.../1280x1280.jpg

Robust job growth in Houston even after 6 MONTHS of continuous oil price decline. Downstream is expected to cushion the cuts in Upstream sector and Midstream will remain flat.

http://www.houstonchronicle.com/busi...ng-6035397.php

All Nippon, Sunwing, Volaris, and WestJet all new foreign airliners to IAH Houston. Officially announced entry into the market. Brings total foreign flag count to 22 tying Boston for first time in city history. More announcements of new foreign airliners expected by summer BTW.

I'm sorry but I can't find an article saying that One Market Square is dead. :shrug:

If not already, you could volunteer for the Memorial Park design committee (s) to help make sure something good happens.

Also Eva Air, which is bringing the Hello Kitty 777.

And there are rumors Air New Zealand may join them...:tup:

Capital expenditures in oil have dropped so sharply that some are speculating that a price spike could occur in the next couple of years. And so the yo-yo continues:

OPEC’s El-Badri Says $200 Oil Possible With Lack of Spending

I should change the heading to under construction or very recently completed. I thought I had read that the Sovereign, while leasing, was still under construction. But that appears to have been outdated.

On One Market Square, I meant to list the apartment building known as Market Square Tower (and I included the wrong height as well.) I'll correct the post.

CORRECTIONS (Hat tip to Urbanizer)
High-Rises Under Construction or very recently completed in Houston
Buildings over 200' tall under construction in Houston:

1. 609 Main @ Texas/Downtown (756 ft)
2. Market Square Tower/Downtown (533 ft)
3. 2929 Weslayan/River Oaks (533 ft)
4. BHP/Uptown (477 ft)
5. Marriott Marquis/Downtown (400 ft)
6. 3400 Montrose/Montrose (400 ft)
7. Catalyst/Downtown (373 ft)
8. Residences at Market Square/Downtown (362 ft)
9. Belfiore/Uptown (347 ft)
10. Hilcorp Energy Tower/Downtown (346 ft)
11. SkyHouse River Oaks/River Oaks-Uptown (333 ft)
12. Astoria/Uptown (322 ft)
13. SkyHouse Houston/Downtown (320 ft) (Completed mid-2014)
14. The Southmore/Museum District (320 ft)
15. Noble Energy Center Two/Northwest (307 ft)
16. Millennium Tower II/Energy Corridor (293 ft)
17. Energy Center IV/Energy Corridor (293 ft)
18. The Sovereign/Montrose (280 ft) (Completed Spring 2014)
19. Millennium Medical Center/Medical Center (280 ft)
20. Phillips 66 South Tower/Energy Corridor (274 ft)
21. Air Liquide Center I/Memorial City (267 ft)
22. Amegy Bank Tower/Uptown (267 ft)
23. The Carter/Montrose-Museum District (250 ft)
24. Phillips 66 North Tower/Energy Corridor (242 ft)
25. Energy Center V/Energy Corridor (240 ft)
26. Park Place at Buffalo Bayou/Allen Parkway (240 ft)
27. Energy Tower IV/Energy Corridor (227 ft)
28. San Felipe Place/River Oaks (223 ft)
29. One Grove Street/Upper Kirby (216 ft)
30. 1885 St. James Place/Uptown (200 ft)

That's quite an enviable list, even if it doesn't include some of the buildings in the construction database.

What buildings are missing?

Probably not any of the taller ones, but a few in the 10-20 story range may be missing; it's in the SkyscraperPage database.

Swamplot holds out the intriguing possibility that another 40-story residential project may be bubbling below the surface:

HIGHRISE SITE?
On-then-Off Sale of The Georgian Apartments Near Highland Village Is On Again, Maybe

http://swamplot.com/wp-content/uploa...-willowick.jpg

That list includes several that are not actually under construction. The only additional building over 200 ft that I found was 3737 Buffalo Speedway.


High-Rises Under Construction or very recently completed in Houston
Buildings over 200' tall under construction in Houston:

1. 609 Main @ Texas/Downtown (756 ft)
2. Market Square Tower/Downtown (533 ft)
3. 2929 Weslayan/River Oaks (533 ft)
4. BHP/Uptown (477 ft)
5. Marriott Marquis/Downtown (400 ft)
6. 3400 Montrose/Montrose (400 ft)
7. Catalyst/Downtown (373 ft)
8. Residences at Market Square/Downtown (362 ft)
9. Belfiore/Uptown (347 ft)
10. Hilcorp Energy Tower/Downtown (346 ft)
11. SkyHouse River Oaks/River Oaks-Uptown (333 ft)
12. Astoria/Uptown (322 ft)
13. SkyHouse Houston/Downtown (320 ft) (Completed mid-2014)
14. The Southmore/Museum District (320 ft)
15. Noble Energy Center Two/Northwest (307 ft)
16. Millennium Tower II/Energy Corridor (293 ft)
17. Energy Center IV/Energy Corridor (293 ft)
18. The Sovereign/Montrose (280 ft) (Completed Spring 2014)
19. Millennium Medical Center/Medical Center (280 ft)
20. Phillips 66 South Tower/Energy Corridor (274 ft)
21. Air Liquide Center I/Memorial City (267 ft)
22. Amegy Bank Tower/Uptown (267 ft)
23. The Carter/Montrose-Museum District (250 ft)
24. Phillips 66 North Tower/Energy Corridor (242 ft)
25. Energy Center V/Energy Corridor (240 ft)
26. Park Place at Buffalo Bayou/Allen Parkway (240 ft)
27. 3737 Buffalo Speedway (240 ft)
28. Energy Tower IV/Energy Corridor (227 ft)
29. San Felipe Place/River Oaks (223 ft)
30. One Grove Street/Upper Kirby (216 ft)
31. 1885 St. James Place/Uptown (200 ft)

You've got to hand it to some of the local developers. Willing to ignore a looming recession and just keep building...

Deal of the Week: Office park defies odds

http://ww2.hdnux.com/photos/34/25/73.../1920x1920.jpg

Enjoy it while it lasts...

Houston's economy among top-performing in the world

... which will be a long time.

Has this been posted yet?

Amid plunging oil prices, luxury apartment developer shifts focus away from Houston


The Hanover Co. is holding off on developing new multifamily projects in Houston amid plunging oil prices.

The Houston-based developer, which builds luxury apartment projects around the country, has been ramping up its activity in local multifamily market since 2010, building high-end projects like Hanover Post Oak in the Galleria area. However, now that oil prices have nosedived — from more than $100 a barrel in July 2014 to less than $50 in January 2015 — capital for new projects is drying up.

In August, Hanover shared plans to build a 30-story, 300-unit luxury apartment tower in the Upper Kirby area. Hanover had a 1.65-acre parcel under contract near Kirby Drive and Steel Street. The company was hoping to close the land deal in early 2015 and begin construction in the summer.

http://www.bizjournals.com/houston/n...apartment.html