Another tenant at downtown Houston’s newest office tower is planning to put real money into the space.
Third Coast Infrastructure is preparing to launch a buildout of its new headquarters at the Norton Rose Fulbright Tower, a project expected to cost at least $2.8 million, according to a recent filing with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation. The Houston Business Journal reported that the Houston-based energy infrastructure firm plans to relocate into a 20,800-square-foot space on the 15th floor of the 28-story building at 1550 Lamar Street.
The filing shows the buildout will affect roughly 16,249 square feet and is expected to wrap by the end of the year. Houston-based Tramonte Design Studio is listed as the project’s designer, though no general contractor has been named.
The move was first announced in October, when New York-based Skanska USA Commercial Development — the tower’s owner and developer, the U.S. subsidiary of the Swedish construction company — revealed Third Coast as the building’s fourth tenant. The company is relocating from Hess Tower at 1501 McKinney Street, upgrading into a trophy tower that has become one of the few bright spots in a still-uneven Downtown Houston office market.
Skanska pitched the lease as a sign of Third Coast’s growth and its long-term commitment to Houston. Third Coast President and CEO Matt Rowland said at the time that the company was drawn to the building’s technology infrastructure, meeting spaces and amenities, calling it a “modern, world-class environment” for employees and clients.
Third Coast operates offshore projects across the Gulf Coast, including natural gas and liquids pipelines, processing plants and a deepwater floating production system — a business profile that still supports demand for high-quality office space, even as many energy firms shrink their workspace.
The buildout plan follows another leasing win for Skanska at the tower. Norton Rose Fulbright, the international law firm that anchors the building and gives it its name, recently expanded its presence to eight full floors, or about 139,000 square feet. The firm originally signed a 15-year lease before construction began in 2021 and moved in last year.
With that expansion, plus leases signed by Boston Consulting Group and litigation boutique Hicks Johnson, the tower is now about 70 percent leased, Skanska said. Ground-floor retail has also come online, including Hugo Ortega’s Zaranda restaurant and Tenfold Coffee.
Altogether, the Norton Rose Fulbright Tower totals 375,000 square feet of office space and 7,000 square feet of retail.
— Eric Weilbacher
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