HOUSTON | Service Corporation International HQ | 203 FT | 13 FLOORS

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Project in brief: The site for this tower once was the home to the studios of KHOU-TV. The building was demolished in 2018 after flooding from 2017's Hurricane Harvey rendered the building unusable. The land that once held the studios and parking lot was sold to SCI (Service Corporation International) at the time demolition was taking place. The company has a site adjacent to the east of that piece of land where their headquarters is located in a 12-story building constructed in 1972.

The current plan is to construct the new tower and demolish the existing one, repurposing the land for a mixed-use development. The tower is expected to be built between 2023 & 2025. There is no timeline for the remainder of the development. Gensler is the architect.

Renderings and project information c/o Paco Jones on HAIF.

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Replat of site from COH c/o hindesky on HAIF

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COH Permits appear to be going out on tiebacks for the eastern side of the foundation's walls. Found by hindesky on HAIF

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https://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/article/sci-new-hq-at-former-khou-site-18550338.php

Downtown Redevelopment board OKs $13.8M tax increment for new Service Corp. headquarters

By Erica Grieder,
Staff writer
Dec 13, 2023

Service Corp. International, the Houston-based funeral services giant, is expected to begin construction next year on a $150 million headquarters after the Downtown Redevelopment Authority on Tuesday authorized as much as $13.8 million in reimbursements for flood mitigation work at the site.

SCI's new tower, being developed by Hines, will be built at the former site of KHOU-TV studios, 1945 Allen Parkway, next to SCI's current offices. The roughly 900 employees will continue to work at the existing tower — which has been flooded several times — until the new building is finished.

City leaders described the move as a way to keep the historic company in the heart of Houston while improving public infrastructure along Allen Parkway and without the city incurring any upfront costs or taking on more debt.

SCI would receive the additional taxes created by the increased value of the new property, said Allen Douglas, the redevelopment board's chief operating officer, executive director and general counsel. The figure is based on the projected value of the improved site, he explained: "If SCI does not generate that amount of additional value through the construction of the new commercial building, it will not receive that amount of reimbursement."

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Storm sewer / drainage infrastructure at this site is about to get underway. Not a surprise based on the history of the site.

https://www.templeterraceupdates.com/

photos c/o hindesky on HAIF

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Work on creating the on-site stormwater detention vault has begun.

c/o hindesky on HAIF

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Temple Terrace Area Storm Sewer infrastructure upgrades are getting underway.

c/o hindesky on HAIF

2/13

















2/17

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Infrastructure work is continuing

c/o hindesky on HAIF





Per the website for the infrastructure work, the stormwater vault will be topped by a pocket park.

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This one has shifted to construction mode for the building itself. Utility work also continues.

10/24/24 - c/o hindesky on HAIF











10/29/24 - c/o hindesky on HAIF

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Work Schedule via Hindesky on HAIF

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12/15/24 - c/o hindesky on HAIF









1/13/2025 - c/o Screwston on HAIF









2/7/2025 - c/o hindesky on HAIF

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c/o hindesky on HAIF

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c/o hindesky on HAIF

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This project was referenced in an article from HOK regarding their adaptation to new city building standards regarding flooding.

Project Green: Flood Protection Meets Public Amenity

Project Green, a confidential headquarters tower along Houston’s Buffalo Bayou waterfront, demonstrates how developers can turn flood challenges into assets. The client chose to redevelop the lowest, most flood-prone portion of its expanded campus first, embracing the city’s no-net-fill in the floodplain rule rather than avoiding it. The design response excavates beneath the new tower, converting the lowest parking level into intentional flood storage. During a severe flood event, this area safely provides up to 15 feet of floodplain storage without impacting the offices and amenities above.



Section cut shows how the lowest parking level is designed to fill with floodwater, protecting offices above.

The project didn’t just mitigate risk. It also improved the neighborhood by rerouting and upgrading a city storm sewer through the property and installing an inline regional detention pond sized for nearby areas. These improvements increased the protection from a system with less than a two-year capacity to one with a 100-year capacity. To offset a portion of the construction cost, Houston’s Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone agreed to reimburse the owner for these upgrades. Bioretention gardens were integrated into the site drainage and landscape design to slow and clean stormwater runoff before it enters Buffalo Bayou. Topping the underground detention vault, a small community park now replaces the former asphalt parking lot, providing shared green space for the neighborhood.



A former asphalt parking lot becomes a public greenspace where neighbors can gather atop an underground detention vault.

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https://houstonarchitecture.com/topic/47...kway-by-hines/page/8/#findComment-729375