$3B Mixed-Use Project Breaks Ground in Austin

Joint venture partners Brandywine Realty Trust and Canyon Partners Real Estate have broken ground on the first phase of a $3 billion, 66-acre master-planned neighborhood in Austin.

Formerly the site of IBM’s Broadmoor campus and now rebranded as Uptown ATX, the project is planned to ultimately encompass nearly 7 million square feet of office, multifamily, retail and hospitality uses, as well as a new Capital Metro Rail Station.

In a prepared statement, Brandywine President & CEO Jerry Sweeney said “the ultimate vision for Uptown ATX” includes “establishing this area as Austin’s second downtown.” (Uptown ATX is just off Highway 1, a/k/a the MoPac Expressway, about 10 miles north of Austin’s downtown).

The development reportedly is the largest transit-oriented master-planned community in Austin.

Its first phase, now underway, is One Uptown, a $328 million, 5-acre mixed-use project comprising 348,000 square feet of Class A office space, 341 apartment residences, 15,000 square feet of street-level retail, a six-story parking garage and a public park.

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The 14-story office portion, designed by Page Architects, features 13-foot floor-to-ceiling windows, 44,000-square-foot floorplates and an 8,000-square-foot lobby with a café offering indoor and outdoor seating.

Designed by GFF Architects, the multifamily portion includes floor-to-ceiling windows, private balconies, custom lighting and high-end finishes. An elevated 35,000-square-foot amenity deck includes a resort-style pool, 5,000-square-foot club room, and a 3,100-square-foot fitness center open to both residents and office workers.

One Uptown is targeting LEED Silver certification and an Austin Energy Green Building certification.

The project’s office component is targeted to deliver in the third quarter of 2023 and the multifamily portion is scheduled for completion in the second quarter of 2024.

A good future

Phase one of the master plan consists of three primary projects, a Brandywine spokesperson told Commercial Property Executive: One Uptown, which is on Block A; The Chase at Uptown ATX, on Block F, a multifamily project slated to begin construction in early 2022; and One and Two Skyrise (Block L), a pair of 25- and 19-story office towers, which are expected to receive site plan approvals in early 2022.

Start dates for further phases are tentative and pending market conditions.

Economic indicators suggest that metro Austin is currently in a recovery stage. But the city is well situated to move into expansion, driven by population and employment growth, especially in well-paying tech jobs, according to a third-quarter report from Newmark.  

Looking beyond the COVID-19 pandemic, the report sees longer-term resilience in the office sector, which is expected to outperform the nation as a whole.