Tall & Urban News

On a full city block near the Austin Convention Center downtown, Cielo Property Group proposes to build two office buildings, which could add up to a combined 148,645 square meters (1.6 million square feet) of space.

Cielo recently purchased the southern half of a block along Fourth Street, just east of Frost Bank Tower. The firm purchased the northern half of the block in 2020. 

Plans involve obtaining a site development permit for a 50-story office tower in the southern portion of the block. The project would entail demolishing an existing event venue.  The northern end currently contains a two-story condo building, which would also need to be demolished to build up to 82,331 square meters (886,200 square feet) of office space. 

Designs for the first proposed office building are underway, with a focus on green building, wellness, and cultural amenities, according to the developer.

Founded in 2010, Cielo co-developed the 29-story Third + Shoal high-rise, among other projects.

If Cielo's proposed new downtown high-rises are built, they would join other towers—including residential, office, mixed-use and government buildings– that are under construction or planned downtown, where development has been ongoing despite the coronavirus pandemic.

One of these projects is planned at West Fifth and Colorado streets. An affiliate of Stonelake Capital Partners aims to build a 50-story tower with residential and office space. Plans call for 318 apartments above 9,290 square meters (100,000 square feet) of office space. Groundbreaking is tentatively set for the first quarter of 2022, with the tower expected to be completed in 2025.

For more on this story, go to the Austin American-Statesman.