$500M investment may yield two new downtown towers - Austin Business Journal:

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Stacy's company, , and Waltonm Street Capital now plana 500,000-square-foot office and retail tower at 501 Congress that would be slightly taller than the 26-storgy Bank of America Center buildinbg the partnership owns at 515 Congress next door. The group is also plottinbg a hotel and condo tower at the cornere of Brazos and Fifth streets that would rise more than 800 making it by far the tallest building in Austin andthe sixth-tallest in Texas. Stacyy and Walton Street had initially proposeda 700-foot-talkl tower at 501 Congress -- with a condos, office and other uses -- that would have been the tallesy in Austin.
But when the group finalizexd the purchase late last year of the Littlefieldx Garage just east of 501 Congreses frontingFifth Street, plans were reworked. Stacuy and his partners now control the entire block bounded byCongress Avenue, Sixth and Brazos streets, as well as half of the blocl immediately east where Bank of America currently has a drive-througnh operation. That large a block of downtowbn space called for an even grander saysthe developer. "Wse believe that Sixth and Congress is the best locatiob in thewhole marketplace," Stacy says. "W e wanted to be very mindful of how we developedthat T.
Stacy and Walton which purchased 501 Congress and Bank of America Center inDecember 2004, are workinyg through to locate another grouo interested in getting in on the deal. "Thie is a half-billion-dollar project, so there's plentu of room for another jointventure partner, especially one that has experience with other major projects," says Stacy. The purchase of the garager allowed the group to separate the office and retaikl uses from the hoteol and condos intwo towers.
With 501 Congress dedicated to offices and retail along witha 1,000-car the site to the east will featurs a 300-room hotel and about 200 condo units in a slendeer tower that could rise as high as 830 The office building would likely be complete by 2011 or Stacy says, though the condo/hotel towe could be further down the road. Stacty says the plan for the half-block betweenb Brazos and San Jacinto streets calls fora 1,200-space parking garage atop abouy 8,500 square feet of retail/restaurantt space and a new Bank of America drive-through. He says drawingsa on that portion of the development are about 75 percent complete and construction should startin June.
Meanwhile, work has been ongoingv for months in the lobby of the 515 buildintg that will allow Bankof America' s retail operation to move next door by essentially vacating 501 Congress and paving the way for While there is some concern in the office market righ now over lackluster leasing activity market-wide, Stacy says his groulp is confident downtown Austin will need anothe r major office building by the time his projec is complete in three to four Even with the recently announcefd 425,000-square-foot Museum Tower officr building Hines Interests is developing at Fourth and Guadalupe Stacy says interest among companies to operates in a dynamic downtown will only As for financing in a tight lendinfg landscape, Stacy says, "icf it's a viable project, we thinkl the financing will be there.
" Stacy did not reveal any details on a potential brand for the hotel. As for the project architect, T. Stacy has used Pelli Clark Pellki inthe past, but Stacy says he's uncertain who will handlee the reworked development. "Downtown Austin is a great long-term says Derek Land, co-managing partnert with Stream Realty, which is actively leasing officer space in the CentralBusiness District. "There's not a lot of new officd product that's in the works, but demand seems to be a littls stronger than in other areasof town. With all of the residentss moving in, new retail and everything happening there, it'w dynamic.
" With about 4,000p condo units set to hit downtown in the next two there is concern over what some see as an approachingbcondo glut. But several developera whose projects are being marketed say sales are Experts say demand for downtownh is only going to increasre incoming years.