Midway announces new office component of East River mixed-use development

Houston-based Midway, the privately owned, fully integrated real estate investment, development, and management firm, announced a new for-sale office space component within its 150-acre East River mixed-use development. Anchoring East River’s northern boundary on Clinton Drive, the initial construction of “The Studios at East River” will consist of three 10,000-square-foot independent office structures with additional buildings planned in future expansion phases. Global award-winning landscape architecture firm OJB has pre-purchased the first of the three buildings and will be relocating its Houston practice from Pennzoil Place to East River.  Construction on the Studios is underway and is slated for completion in June 2023.

Geared towards businesses looking to own their own space, the two-story office buildings are fully customizable with minimal interior build-out, with each building including four ADA compliant restrooms, a kitchen, an elevator, and four to five dedicated surface parking spaces, with contract parking available in an adjacent multi-level garage.  

Houston-based OJB Landscape Architecture, the collective professional landscape design and urban planning practice, is leading the site and landscape design of the East River project. An OJB team of landscape architects, architects, horticulturists, scientists, planners, and continuing care experts contributed to the East River project, focusing on the connection to the water, the pedestrian realm, central green spaces, active transportation and upgraded infrastructure. Sustainability is deployed throughout the site design by controlling stormwater, using native plantings, and creating new wildflower meadows. Over 300 trees from redeveloped projects around Houston were saved and replanted as an on-site tree nursery to supply plant material through the multiple phases. Dedicated bike lanes, walkable districts with wide pedestrian streetscape and open space connectivity will link the surrounding neighborhoods to the site and to the bayou trail network.  

In total, East River’s Phase I will offer 300,000 square feet of office space designed to fit a wide variety of business needs alongside The Laura, a five-story, modern-industrial multifamily community of 360 apartment homes; and an additional 100,000 square feet of ground-level retail that will fuse commerce and culture with restaurant, hospitality, soft goods, medical, and entertainment forming spaces. Retail tenants confirmed for Phase I include Lick Honest Ice Creams, El Condor Coffee Roaster, Tomi Jewelry, URBN Dental, and a new special events venue and landmark rooftop bar from the owners of The Astorian. Office tenants include Impact Networking, Method Architecture, Houston Maritime Center, and TEAL. Construction is currently underway and is scheduled for completion in 2023.

Houston medical plaza earns ENERGY STAR® building certification

JLL announced that Memorial Hermann Medical Plaza was awarded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s ENERGY STAR® certification for superior energy performance. Located at 6400 Fannin St., Memorial Hermann Medical Plaza is a 510,000 square-foot, Class AA medical office tower in the heart of the Texas Medical Center in Houston.

ENERGY STAR®-certified buildings are verified to perform in the top 25% of buildings nationwide, based on weather-normalized source energy use that considers occupancy, hours of operation, and other key metrics. ENERGY STAR® is the only energy efficiency certification in the United States that is based on verified energy performance.

2022 marks the first year since 2014 that medical buildings were able to be considered for the ENERGY STAR® certification. Memorial Hermann Medical Plaza earned a score of 97 indicating this building’s superior performance compared to its peers. This award adds to the property’s other accomplishments of LEED GOLD O+M v4.1 Existing Building, and Well HSR (Health and Safety Rating).

Senior General Manager Karen Tucker, LEED AP O+M, and GGP of JLL directs property management for the asset.