After sitting vacant for nearly three decades, the former home of Texaco, Inc. has been converted into a 17-story, 286-unit apartment building in the heart of downtown Houston.
Dallas-based Provident Realty Advisors, which led the $99.5 million enterprise, renamed the property “The Star” as a tribute to the oil giant’s logo—“the big bright Texaco star!” in the old advertising jingle. The redevelopment came on the heels of several unsuccessful attempts to turn the building into a hotel in the years following Texaco’s relocation to the Houston suburbs in 1989.
“It was a beautiful but derelict building right in the center of the new downtown core, surrounded by new office developments, shopping, entertainment, and nightlife,” said Kip Platt, Director of Development and Acquisitions at Provident Realty Advisors.
The Renaissance Revival–style building features a brick, terracotta, and limestone façade, with signature vaulted arcades at street level that promote pedestrian activity. The original 13-story building, completed in 1915, was designed by Warren and Wetmore, a New York architecture firm whose portfolio includes Manhattan’s Grand Central Terminal. A 1938 annex expansion and a 16-story addition, completed in 1958, bulked up the structure to fill a city block. In 2003, the building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The redevelopment team worked closely with the National Park Service and the Texas Historical Commission to qualify for federal and state historic tax credits. The Star was also the first project to benefit from Houston’s new Downtown Living Initiative, which awards $15,000/unit in tax incentives to developers who create new residential projects in the urban core.
At one time a “ beautiful but derelict building,” according to developer Kip Platt, Provident Realty Advisors, The Star now provides 286 luxury apartments in downtown Houston. The original 17-story structure, completed in 1915, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2003. Photo: Peter Molick
“Most of the structural elements were in really good shape. The building just needed some thorough cleaning, repair, and restoration,” said Robert Jurbergs, AIA, LEED GA, Principal at HBG Design, the Memphis-based architecture firm that oversaw the redesign.
HBG followed strict historic preservation requirements in restoring the structure’s distinctive features, notably its limestone columns, mosaic tiles, decorative chandeliers, bronze grilles, and historic clock. To improve thermal performance, the project team added exterior envelope insulation and specified new energy-efficient windows. “We went back to the original blueprints to ensure the new window profiles were as true to the original wood detailing as possible,” said Jurbergs.
The most pressing problem was how to fit a high-efficiency mechanical system with an additional layer of plumbing, fire protection lines, and mechanical ducts for apartments into a century-old office building.
According to Mark Weaver, FAIA, Principal at HBG Design, the project team circumvented this obstacle by building a 66,000-sf extension on the back side of the original L-shaped building, where historic preservation restrictions were less stringent. This gave them five more high-ceiling apartments with balconies on each floor. They also carved out a cozy outdoor courtyard for a heated, resort-style swimming pool.
The project team squeezed in a nine-level, 750-space parking garage for use by both residents and the general public. The Star sits on the city’s light rail system and ties into the Houston tunnel system, a network of subterranean pedways that links 95 city blocks.
STEPPING BACK INTO HISTORY
The Star’s interior spaces blend contemporary styling with intentional nods to its origins. Large-scale historical photos of the original structure are prominently displayed in the majestic ground-floor lobby. The original Texaco brass elevators have been emboldened with a black geometric design that runs throughout the building.
“It made sense to highlight this amazing, architecturally significant building rather than trying to hide it or make people think it was a new building,” said Lauren Parsons, a design and branding consultant who led the interior design of the amenity spaces. “I wanted it to have a timeless look.”
Photos of Albert Einstein, Muddy Waters, and others linked to the year 1915 embellish the 17th-floor amenities space, which has a lounge, display kitchen, and Equinox-inspired fitness center. Photo: Lauren Parsons
Parsons lived in the building as it was being completed. She curated an eclectic mix of Texaco memorabilia from former employees and collectors for display in the expansive basement game room and lounge area, a dimly lit space that takes its cue from Prohibition-era speakeasies.
The property has 207 one-bedroom and 79 two-bedroom units, with 22 different floor plans ranging from 730 to 1,730 sf, on levels two through 16. Apartments have 11-foot ceilings, quartz countertops, custom cabinetry, stainless steel appliances, and oversized soaking tubs. Monthly rents range from $1,750 to $3,860.
A 1915 design motif extends to the building’s 17th-floor penthouse level, which showcases large-scale black-and-white portraits of Billie Holiday and other cultural figures loosely linked to the year the original building was completed.
AN INTERESTING MIX OF TENANTS
The location can’t be beat. The property is adjacent to the city’s shopping and historic districts and located within 160 feet of 8,000 jobs. The Star is about 90% leased, according to Provident Realty Advisors’ Platt.
“It’s an eclectic group of people who live in the building—from professional basketball players, to artists, to attorneys,” he said. “Anybody can go live in a shiny glass high-rise, but you can’t duplicate the look or character of a historic building. There’s just a unique vibe to it.”
On the project team
DEVELOPER: Provident Realty Advisors ARCHITECT HBG Design INTERIOR DESIGNER Lauren Parsons MECHANICAL/PLUMBING ENGINEER Haltom Engineering ELECTRICAL ENGINEER DePouw Engineering ELEVATOR CONSULTANT Lerch Bates Company GC Provident Realty Advisors Construction
Related Stories
Mixed-Use | Oct 15, 2018
35-story mixed-use tower will be tallest residential building in Long Beach
Studio One Eleven designed the tower.
Multifamily Housing | Oct 10, 2018
Affordable treasures
This year’s prestigious Gold Nugget Awards honor four projects that provide affordably priced housing for homeless families, seniors, and veterans.
Multifamily Housing | Oct 9, 2018
Breaking new ground: The New Home Company
The company, which is headquartered in Aliso Viejo, Calif. relies heavily on focus groups and market research to understand buyer preferences specific to each new community.
Multifamily Housing | Oct 9, 2018
Bjarke Ingels Group creates 66 homes for low-income citizens in Copenhagen
The building is approximately 73,000 sf.
Mixed-Use | Oct 4, 2018
Four-story hotel and adjacent affordable housing community opens in California’s Sonoma County
Axis/GFA Architecture and Design was the architect for the project.
Multifamily Housing | Sep 25, 2018
Fitness centers go for wellness
Equipment choice, room size, program offerings—a lot of thinking has to go into creating a fitness facility that pays off in resident satisfaction.
Multifamily Housing | Sep 24, 2018
Topsy-turvy: Creative use of air rights results in a model of urban luxury design
Using bold cantilevering and imaginative structural design, ODA and its project team created a 12-story building whose massing grows in width as it steps upward.
Multifamily Housing | Sep 21, 2018
A place of ‘voluntary and cheerful resort’
A project team soldiers on in the wake of a nightmarish turn of events.
Multifamily Housing | Sep 19, 2018
Multifamily market trends 2018: What the experts are saying
The growth of keyless entry solutions and demand for oversized units are among the trends and ideas shared at Marcus & Millichap’s 2018 Multifamily Forum in Chicago.
Multifamily Housing | Aug 29, 2018
Brighton Marine is the largest veterans’ development constructed in Boston since World War II
The Architectural Team designed the project.