Houston, Texas

Houston is the largest city within the state of Texas, fourth in the United States, and the second-largest economic area of the Gulf Coast region. The city is the county seat of Harris County, the third most populous county in the country. A portion of southwest Houston extends into Fort Bend County and a small portion in the northeast extends into Montgomery County.

Skyline

Downtown Houston

In the 1960s, Downtown Houston comprised of a modest collection of mid-rise office structures, but has since grown into one of the largest skylines in the United States. In 1960, the central business district had 10 million square feet (1,000,000 m²) of office space, increasing to about 16 million square feet (1,600,000 m²) in 1970. Downtown Houston was on the threshold of a boom in 1970 with 8.7 million square feet (8,700,000 m²) of office space planned or under construction and huge projects being launched by real estate developers. The largest proposed development was the 32 block Houston Center. Only a small part of the original proposal was ultimately constructed. Other large projects included the Cullen Center, Allen Center, and towers for Shell Oil. The surge of skyscrapers mirrored the skyscraper booms in other cities, such as Los Angeles and Dallas. Houston experienced another downtown construction spurt in the 1970s with the energy industry boom.

Related Topics:
1960 - Downtown Houston - Skyline - Central business district - 1970 - Real estate developer - Shell Oil - Los Angeles - Dallas

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The first major skyscraper to be constructed in Houston was the 50-floor, 714-foot-tall (218 m) One Shell Plaza in 1971. A succession of skycrapers were built throughout the 1970s, culminating with Houston's tallest skyscraper, the 75-floor, 1,002-foot-tall (305 m) JPMorgan Chase Tower (formerly the Texas Commerce Tower), which was completed in 1982. In 2002, it was the ninth tallest building in the United States and the 23rd tallest skyscaper in the world. In 1983, the 71-floor, 970-foot-tall (296 m) Wells Fargo Plaza was completed. Skyscraper construction in downtown Houston came to an end in the mid-1980s with the collapse of Houston's energy industry and the resulting severe economic recession. When the 53-floor Texaco Heritage Plaza was completed in 1987, it appeared that no more skyscrapers would be constructed for a while. However, in 2002, the Houston-based Enron Corporation began construction of a 40-floor skyscraper which was about to be completed in 2001 as the company collapsed in one of the most dramatic corporate failures in the history of the United States. Other smaller office structures were built in the 2000-2003 period. As of December 2001, downtown Houston had about 40 million square feet (4,000,000 m²) of office space, including 28 million square feet (2,800,000 m²) of class A office space.

Related Topics:
Skyscraper - 1971 - JPMorgan Chase Tower - Texas Commerce Tower - 1982 - 2002 - World - 1983 - Wells Fargo Plaza - 1980 - Economic recession - Texaco - 1987 - Enron Corporation - 2001

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Uptown Houston

The Uptown Houston district boomed along with Houston during the 1970s and early 1980s. A collection of mid-rise office buildings appeared along the Interstate 610 west (or simply "West Loop"). It became one of the most impressive instances of the edge city. The highest achievement of Uptown Houston was the construction of the landmark 899-foot-tall (274 m) Williams Tower (known as the Transco Tower until 1999). At the time, it was believed to the be the world's tallest skyscraper outside of a central business district. The Williams Tower was the product of a unique era in Houston. A period when energy companies were loaded with assets and sought impressive, monumental structures to project their power.

Related Topics:
Uptown Houston - Interstate 610 - Edge city - Williams Tower - Transco Tower - 1999 - Central business district

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The Uptown Houston district is also home to other landmark buildings, designed by architects such as César Pelli and Philip Johnson. Large-scale office construction in Uptown Houston, however, came to an end with the collapse of energy prices and the meltdown of Houston's economy in the mid-to-late 1980s. Uptown Houston had 23.8 million square feet (2,380,000 m²) of office space in 2001, whereas Downtown Houston had about 40 million square feet (4,000,000 m²). In the late 1990s, there was a mini-boom of mid-rise residential tower construction, typically 30 stories tall. Uptown Houston has accumulated a large concentration of high-rise residential structures for such a low-density city.

Related Topics:
César Pelli - Philip Johnson - 2001 - 1990 - Residential - Tower - High-rise

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