State To consolidate Austin-Area Offices Into $895M Capitol Complex

A $895 million renovation is reshaping downtown Austin as the Texas Capitol Complex Plan consolidates all state agencies into 1.5 million square feet of space in four new buildings north of the Capitol.

The first phase of the plan started in 2018. The $581.2 million phase features one new 416,000-square-foot office building at 1601 Congress Ave., another new 603,000-square-foot office building at 1801 Congress Ave., and five levels of underground parking that will form the base of a tree-lined pedestrian mall. This gateway to the Capitol Complex will have public green space for tourism, events, and festivals. Phase One is scheduled to begin occupancy in 2021 with completion in May 2022.

Phase Two, which recently received $313.7 million from the past legislative session, includes buildings on 15th Street and Lavaca Street sites to bring an additional 525,000 gross square feet of office space and 2,550 parking spaces to the Capitol Complex. This phase is set to begin in late 2022 and conclude in July 2025.

Phase Three will add two more state office buildings to the complex. A schedule and cost estimate are to be determined.

A decision on which agencies will be located in the new buildings has not been finalized. Staff at the Texas Facilities Commission plan to begin working with agencies currently located in leased office space to determine future space needs and discuss office space assignments this fall.

At project completion, the state of Texas will be able to retire all current remaining leases in the Austin area at a savings of $7.5 million annually, according to the master plan.

This was original published by Strategic Partnerships.