In the News

Dec 19, 2024

At Barbacana, chef Christian Hernandez is serving what he calls Houston-inspired cuisine, giving American dishes a flare of international flavors.

The restaurant opened this week downtown in the Bayou Lofts building, 907 Franklin. For now, it is serving a tasting menu before debuting its a la carte options in a couple of weeks. Hernandez, 34, has a resume of working at fine dining restaurants in Houston and New York, including Michelin-starred establishments.

Nov 20, 2024

The plan – a joint effort by the Coalition for the Homeless in Houston and Harris County, the city, the county and their partners – involves an increased focus on preventing people from falling into homelessness and providing those who do with a place to stay off the streets while they’re awaiting housing.

Nov 13, 2024

Downtown Houston+ invites Houstonians to embrace the magic of the holiday season at Historic Allen’s Landing Park with the debut of Snow Glow on the Bayou, a captivating light and music spectacular that combines cutting-edge technology with the natural beauty of Buffalo Bayou. Presented by the Houston Downtown Management District, this immersive installation brings the bayou to life with music, dazzling digital art, and light projections on a water screen that is four stories tall and six stories wide.

Oct 30, 2024

There’s a big change coming to Downtown Houston, one designed to make it more of a destination in time for the eyes of the world to be on the city.

Downtown Houston+ is teaming up with the City of Houston to permanently turn a stretch of Main Street into a pedestrian promenade with restaurants and bars along the walkway. It should be completed before the FIFA World Cup matches are played at NRG Stadium. Houston is hosting seven World Cup matches that will run from June 14 through July 4.

Oct 28, 2024

Neway Hospitality marked a construction milestone at the 17-story Holiday Inn Express/Staybridge Suites going up near Minute Maid Park.

The dual-branded hotel at 1319 Texas Ave. at Austin Street topped out, reaching a final height of 204 feet, last week. Sugar Land-based developer Neway Hospitality broke ground on the 275-room hotel in early October 2023 and plans to open it in October 2025.

[...]Neway will build an Urban Street Market grocery to serve guests of the 131-room extended stay Staybridge Suites and area residents.

Oct 25, 2024

By the time the 2026 FIFA World Cup comes to Houston, a seven-block stretch of Main Street is expected to be a car-free, pedestrian walkway lined with retail, patios and greenery.

Downtown Houston+, the organization leading the $12 million project, is unveiling its final design and renderings this week for the Main Street Promenade.

“This is going to create an environment that's unlike anything else that we have in Downtown,” said Kris Larson, CEO of Downtown Houston+.

Oct 17, 2024

GreenStreet, the downtown development that is home of House of Blues, is about to get a multimillion dollar update aimed at transforming how Houstonians interact with the 15-year-old mixed-use project.

Oct 17, 2024

GreenStreet, the bustling downtown mixed-use development, will soon undergo an extensive reimagining that its property managers promise will make it more vibrant and sustainable than ever before.

The project was highlighted during the State of Downtown presentation at the annual meeting hosted by Downtown Houston+ on Oct. 16.

Sep 26, 2024

University of Houston-Downtown will begin its 25-year campus expansion project with an acquired space in a skyscraper, more than 1 mile down the road in the business district.

The tenth floor at 1801 Main will house programs that focus on post-college success, helping students and alumni in a location near many of the places they hope to gain employment, UHD President Loren J. Blanchard said Thursday at a “State of the University” address.

Sep 24, 2024

Public safety guides walk around downtown, and are easily identifiable by their uniforms that say "public safety guide" and baseball caps. If there isn’t one in the immediate vicinity, residents can have one dispatched to their location by calling 713-223-2003 anytime between the hours of 7 a.m. and 11 p.m. Guides are not available outside of those hours.

Sep 19, 2024

New concept from Houston chef Omar Pereney to debut in Spring 2025

HOUSTON, TX – Today, the Houston Downtown Management District board of directors officially selected Houston chef Omar Pereney to operate a new Market Square Park restaurant.

Sep 17, 2024

A Downtown Houston landmark, Jones on Main, has secured the largest office deal so far this year, signing a tenant to take over a seven-floor space previously occupied by WeWork.

Sep 17, 2024

The new owners of Jones on Main, a historic office complex that has been a fixture downtown for 100 years, said they were partnering with a Michelin-star chef to revamp the complex’s food hall. They also recently landed downtown’s biggest office lease of the year to backfill a major space vacated by coworking giant WeWork.

Aug 2, 2024

The city continues to look at ways to enhance the gameday experience for fans downtown, looking at how the business community, properties and rights of way can be more expressive as it relates to that fan engagement, Larson said. The city also plans to continue adding hotels, restaurants and other high-density, mixed-use developments on the east side of downtown.

Jul 24, 2024

The Houston City Council has approved Houston First Corp.'s proposal to acquire additional properties for the planned George R. Brown Convention Center expansion.

Jul 10, 2024

The Houston Astros’ mixed-use entertainment district project planned next to Minute Maid Park is expected to be a significant driver of economic activity downtown.

Jun 12, 2024

Nearly a month after that devastating derecho, a number of downtown Houston streets and sidewalks are still closed to repair damaged buildings. At least eight people died during that May 16 storm. Downtown windows in several high-rises shattered, among other storm debris that is still, in some cases, being replaced.

May 31, 2024

While young professionals have responded positively to urban renewal efforts across the country over the last two decades, a few key hurdles remain: namely affordability, mobility and safety. In an effort to better understand the unique challenges faced by each of Texas’ four major cities, the Austin Business Journal recently gave a platform to urban advocates from across the state.

May 3, 2024

Just as modern parks and public spaces have learned that active programming really draws interest and attendance, downtown Houston appears to be adopting the playbook to boost reasons to work, live, play – and even stay there.

In a 1Q 2024 market report shared by Downtown Houston Plus – which represents Central Houston, Downtown Houston District and Downtown Redevelopment Authority – the findings’ takeaway is in its title: On Solid Ground.

“The pandemic is in the rear-view window,” said Kris Larson, CEO and president of the organization, which stewards and monitors the economic performance of downtown.

May 2, 2024

A Florida real estate firm has purchased Jones on Main, a mixed-use complex that has been a landmark in downtown Houston for about 100 years.

The deal is a sign that some investors are still willing to bet on Houston office space in spite of the broader challenges facing landlords post-pandemic.

The Wideman Co., an Orlando-based real estate firm, paid an undisclosed, all-cash price for the complex on April 30, the company said. The acquisition includes the JPMorgan Chase Bank Building, a 34-story, 794,000-square-foot tower at 712 Main as well as its companion building, the Great Jones Building, a 10-story, 95,000-square-foot tower at 708 Main.

May 1, 2024

The latest progress on that effort is the More Space: Main Street 2.0 project moving into its final design and engineering phase. Downtown Houston+, the organization previously known as Central Houston, is spearheading the project that will permanently transform seven blocks of Main Street, from Rusk Street to Allen’s Landing Park, into a pedestrian promenade.

This is one part of the solution to negating Houston’s notoriety for being a place that requires a vehicle to get around, Downtown Houston+ President and CEO Kristopher Larson told Bisnow.

Apr 14, 2024

A Houston developer is planning a nearly 500-unit district in downtown Houston offering housing priced for low- and moderate-income residents — a unique offering for an area with some of highest rents in the region.
“With 25% of our employment base working in the service industry and similar jobs, providing housing for them is an essential ingredient of a healthy downtown economy,” said Kris Larson, CEO of Downtown Houston+.

Jan 10, 2024

The old days are never coming back, which is fine. Nostalgia isn’t how Houston rolls. The office vacancies today are a chance to make a better city, one where people of all income levels and backgrounds can benefit from the vast potential of creating new housing.

Dec 14, 2023

Service Corporation International (NYSE: SCI), one of Houston's largest publicly traded companies, is one step closer to building a new headquarters tower on the site of KHOU's former home.

The Downtown Redevelopment Authority board, which administers Houston's Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone No. 3, voted on Dec. 12 to authorize a tax increment reimbursement of $13.79 million for public infrastructure improvements and storm resilience related to the $150 million SCI project. The move will provide significant public benefit — including job retention, enhanced public storm water management, pedestrian amenities and environmental resiliency — without incurring upfront cost or new debt for the city, the DRA said.

Dec 2, 2023

Nearly 40 years ago, the U.S. Post Office named its regional post office at 401 Franklin St. after trailblazing congresswoman and Houston icon Barbara Jordan.

Jordan was remembered again Saturday at the same spot with the unveiling of a monument titled “I Am Barbara Jordan” at the site, now home to POST Houston, which bills itself as a dining, cultural and workplace hub.

The sculpture, designed by artist Angelbert Metoyer, features Jordan sitting, facing south toward the skyline with her right hand outstretched.

Nov 22, 2023

Houston shows it’s not inevitable or hopeless. We may not eliminate homelessness altogether, but if we could reduce it by 60 percent, as the city has, we would be a better nation. And one sign of the success of Houston’s approach is that others are copying it.

Nov 3, 2023

Sometime in the future, going to an Astros game might also include a stop at a themed bar for some pregame Karbach Crawford Bocks, shopping for a sweet Tequila Sunrise-style jacket, and shoving down some tacos al pastor with friends mere steps from Minute Maid Park. All within an hour and on the same piece of land.

That’s the idea behind the planned multi-million-dollar "entertainment district" the Astros unveiled Thursday at the 2023 State of Downtown event hosted by economic development nonprofit Central Houston.

Nov 3, 2023

Despite the well-publicized challenges facing Houston’s office market, Central Houston Inc. President and CEO Kris Larson said there are plenty of reasons to remain bullish on downtown as a place to do business.

During Larson’s annual “State of Downtown” address Nov. 2, he said downtown’s office buildings are well positioned to benefit from the ongoing flight-to-quality trend that has been underway across the city for many years.

“Seventy percent of all our downtown office space is Class A space, and 36% has either been constructed or renovated since 2020,” Larson said. “We also have another 375,000 square feet of Class A space under construction.”

Aug 4, 2023

Investments pouring into downtown promise to breathe life into the area. Kristopher Larson, president and CEO of Central Houston, is the person tasked with overseeing downtown’s revitalization. And he has some big ideas about what comes next.

Nov 28, 2022

When Kris Larson landed in the job that made him the new face of downtown Houston, he knew he had big shoes to fill. His predecessor, Bob Eury, had led the downtown economic development group Central Houston since its inception about 40 years ago. Larson is working to knit together the three organizations under a shared vision to shepherd in the next phase of growth for downtown.