Tech giant to occupy all of a 7-story office building at Saltillo development

It seems Google Inc. is making a big bet on Austin.

In addition to its recent lease for an entire 35-story downtown office tower, Google will also occupy all of the office space in the Saltillo mixed-use development under construction in East Austin, according to a real estate source with direct knowledge of the new lease.

Google's latest lease is for 150,000 square feet of space in a seven-story building that's currently under construction at Saltillo, a 10-acre mixed-use development being built between East Fourth and East Fifth streets.

The American-Statesman reported in January that Google will occupy all of a 35-story downtown tower that Trammell Crow Co. is building at West Cesar Chavez and Nueces streets.

As of August 2018, Google had more than 800 employees in Austin. The company's two new leases could provide space for thousands of workers.

Google declined to comment Tuesday, and the company has previously declined to discuss its Austin leases or its plans for its Austin workforce.

Chrissy Fuller, a principal in the Austin office of commercial real estate services firm Avison Young, called Google's latest lease "just another vote of confidence not only in Austin but in East Austin as a very attractive extension of downtown."

Google is among a number of major tech companies expanding in Austin, with others including Apple, Oracle, Facebook and Indeed. Apple in December announced plans for a new $1 billion campus in northwest Austin, on 133 acres at Robinson Ranch.

"The major California tech companies continue to look to Austin as a place to grow," said Diana Holford, senior vice president in Austin with commercial real estate services firm JLL. "Austin has the talent they need and want... Most of these companies first get a toehold in our city, then they find success here and grow exponentially."

When news broke last month of the lease of the 35-story tower, local commercial real estate brokers and a Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce official said the transaction signaled a major commitment to the Austin market by Google, one of the world's largest companies.

“Google is a major player in our corporate community and an engaged community leader; we are pleased to see how they continue to grow," Charisse Bodisch, the chamber's senior vice president of economic development, said in written statement on Jan. 31. "The expansions of our existing businesses reinforces commitment to our community and continues to indicate we have a vibrant economy.”

Saltillo, which is scheduled to open this summer, is being developed by Austin-based Endeavor Real Estate Group. In addition to the office tower, Saltillo will have 800 apartments, a Whole Foods Market grocery, retail space and restaurants that will include Hopdoddy's and a Chuy's Tex-Mex restaurant. Initially known as Plaza Saltillo, the project was rebranded in 2017 simply as Saltillo.

Google is already the lead tenant in a 29-story downtown tower not far from the new 35-story office tower where it has signed a lease. The 35-story tower, which is being built on a tract known as Block 185, will have 790,000 square feet of space, enough to potentially house about 5,000 people, local commercial brokers have said. Brokers say the office space at Saltillo could house roughly 750 workers.

The building on Block 185 is expected to be ready for occupancy in the second quarter of 2022. MSD Capital, Michael Dell's personal investment firm, is a financial backer of the tower, according to marketing materials CBRE had circulated for the building.

The marketing materials say the new tower will have a "premier lakefront location with unobstructed views" and a "skyline defining signature design" by Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects. STG Design is the local architecture firm that is working on the project. Both firms declined to comment.

The location is part of the former Thomas C. Green Water Treatment Plant, which the city of Austin chose Trammel Crow to transform with new development. Block 185 is the fourth and final parcel to be redeveloped. The 29-story high-rise Google already occupies on one of the parcels is called 500 W. 2nd St. Other tracts are home to the Northshore apartment tower and the Austin Proper Hotel & Residences, which is nearing completion.