Houston's Tallest Buildings
Houston's deep in a construction boom, with more than 17M SF underway today. But our tallest towers--the iconic skyscrapers built in the '80s boom--have stood the test of time, design and innovation.
Height: 1,002 feet
Floors: 75
Completed: 1982
Owner: Prime Asset Management
Developer: Hines
Claim to fame: After more than 30 years, JP Morgan Chase Tower is still the tallest five-sided building in the world and tallest building in Texas.
Starchitect: IM Pei
Originally called: Texas Commerce Tower
What could’ve been: It was originally planned to be 80 stories, but the FAA thought it was too risky for planes coming in and out of Hobby Airport. Still, it was the eighth tallest building in the world when it delivered. (It's dropped to 79th now.)
Confusing: JPMorgan Chase only occupies a single branch office on the first floor.
Height: 992 feet
Floors: 71
Completed: 1983
Owner: MetLife
Developer: Century Development Management
Originally called: Allied Bank Plaza. Five years later, it was renamed First Interstate Bank Plaza.
Claim to fame: It remains the tallest all-glass building in the western hemisphere, and the largest multi-tenant building in the southwestern US (1.7M SF of rentable area).
Starchitect: Richard Keating, while with Skidmore, Owings & Merrill
Consulates love it: Throughout its history, it’s housed the Consulate-Generals of the UK, Japan and Switzerland.
Height: 901 feet
Floors: 64
Completed: 1983
Owner: Invesco
Developer: Hines
Claim to fame: When it was built, it was the tallest building in the world outside of a CBD. It's been beaten a few times since--for example, the Nina Tower in Hong Kong is 1,046 feet.
Starchitect: Philip Johnson and John Burgee
Can’t miss it: The 7,000-watt beacon can be seen from 40 miles away on a clear night.
Height: 780 feet
Floors: 56
Completed: 1983
Owner: M-M Properties and GE Pension Trust
Developer: Hines
Claim to Fame: The banking hall is a building-within-a-building. The development team discovered it couldn't relocate the telegraph cables and electrical connections from the existing two-story Western Union building, so it left the existing structure and just built over it.
Starchitect: Philip Johnson and John Burgee
Game On: The building is one of the rewards available in SimCity 3000.
What time is it: The lobby features a rare 18-foot 1914 Seth Thomas clock—only 300 were ever built.
Roomy: The Louisiana Street entrance is a 75-foot-high arched granite doorway. The stonework goes up 102 feet (10 stories) and had to be built by specialists flown in from Spain.
Height: 762 feet
Floors: 53
Completed: 1987
Owner: Brookfield and AEW Capital Management--AEW increased its ownership from 49% to 85% in January 2014.
Developer: Clarion
End of an era: It was the last major office tower built Downtown in the midst of the oil bust. Another skyscraper wasn’t delivered in Houston for nearly 15 years.
Known for: Its Mayan temple crown and being one of only a few Downtown skyscrapers not connected to the tunnel system.
