Crescent Real Estate Holdings LLC will kick off construction of its new McKinney & Olive tower, with a lease from Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP in hand. The Texas law firm has signed on for 109,000 square feet in the new stunner, designed by Pelli Clarke Pelli. It will occupy four floors.
CBRE’s Jeff Ellerman and Phil Puckett represented the law firm in the deal.
“This is one of the most exciting times in Dallas’ downtown/Uptown office market in recent memory,” Ellerman said. “The Uptown area has truly extended our downtown market, and most of the existing buildings are leased. Crescent is building a spectacular new building in the heart of Uptown, and Gardere is a terrific anchor tenant to kick it off.”
The 20-story tower—Uptown’s tallest—will contain about 480,000 square feet of office space and 50,000 square feet of retail space. Floorplates will range from 25,000 to 30,000 square feet and feature 10-foot ceiling heights. It’s planned to include two restaurants, a rooftop garden, fitness center, conference center, and a ground-level piazza. Crescent will pursue gold LEED certification.
Gardere Chair Holland N. O’Neil said the firm was looking for increased efficiencies, growth opportunities, and the conveniences and amenities Uptown provides: “We are confident that our new home will be an Uptown landmark and will assist us in attracting and retaining clients and talented personnel.”
Crescent expects to break ground this summer on the 3.1-acre site at McKinney Avenue and Olive Street—the last prime parcel in the core of Uptown. It expects to complete the 530,000-square-foot project in the summer of 2016.
John Zogg, managing director of leasing for Crescent, said it’s the first commercial development in Uptown to be designed by an internationally renowned architect since the 1980s.
Here are additional renderings of the project:
