Captivating $200 million Uptown Dallas high-rise office/condo complex complete

TBG Partners provided design services for the mixed-use high-rise complex, which consists of a 19-story office tower and a 25-story residential tower that are connected by a one-acre, seventh-floor amenity pool deck/roof garden on top of a parking garage; the project is pre-certified LEED Gold.

 

 

DALLAS, July 19, 2010 – The new 17Seventeen McKinney and Park 17 mixed-use project, designed by landscape architecture and planning firm TBG Partners’ Dallas office and Dallas-based Good Fulton & Farrell, has officially opened. The development is one of the largest mixed-use projects in Uptown Dallas, one of Dallas/Fort Worth’s most dynamic and desirable commercial and residential locales. The two buildings, a 19-story office tower (17Seventeen McKinney) and a 25-story residential tower (Park 17), are connected by a six-level parking garage podium topped with a one-acre amenity pool deck and roof garden. The project also includes 15,000 square feet of new retail and restaurant space wrapping three sides of the block.

A signature element of the project, the one-acre rooftop deck on the 7th floor (on top of the parking garage) allows both office and residential occupants to take advantage of an incomparable space, including the ability to work outside using its Wi-Fi access, dine or drink in an open-air setting, or simply enjoy the dramatic, unobstructed views of Dallas’ urban fabric. Other amenity deck features include a first-rate, 4,000-square-foot fitness center, an outdoor, infinity-edge swimming pool, tree-lined paths and a lushly landscaped park with gardens.

“Equidistant from the Dallas’ new Victory development and the Arts District, and sited at the crossroads of uptown and downtown, this project is arguably at the epicenter of the new Dallas urban landscape,” said Jim Manskey, a principal in TBG Partners’ Dallas office. “And the fact that we have more than one million square feet on two acres of land exemplifies the complexity of this undertaking.”

The 17Seventeen McKinney office tower recently received pre-certification at the gold level of the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) rating system, which is the industry’s green building standard. It will be the first LEED Gold high-rise office building in Dallas. The Park 17 residential tower is currently pursuing LEED-NC certification.

Construction began on the 361,542-square-foot 17Seventeen McKinney Class AA office building during the summer of 2008, and, just two years later, the first tenant moved in on July 1, 2010. The concrete, steel and glass high-rise office building overlooks the planned Woodall Rodgers Park and has views of the Dallas skyline, up McKinney Avenue and down Cedar Springs Road. The ground-floor lobby is finished with polished wood, travertine, granite and limestone and is decorated with works from Texas artists. The tower’s exterior also features captivating visuals that include a 32-foot-wide LED illuminated glass panel capable of changing colors in accord with seasons, community happenings and special events. The tower’s 17th floor includes a 1,519-square-foot terrace cut into the top of the building.

The 292-unit Park 17 residential apartment building also broke ground in the summer of 2008 and moved in its first residents in July 2010. Project team members say that its luxurious amenities – such as oversized balconies, 10-foot ceilings, eight-foot doors and views of the Trinity River, Victory Park, Uptown and the future Woodall Rodgers Park – are the main features that will draw Dallas residents to reside in the building.  Its exterior also features concrete, stone and aluminum finishes.

Designed with sustainability as a guiding principle, the project demonstrates contemporary urban design’s emphasis on community connectivity and development density. The frontage along Cedar Springs Road, Akard Street and McKinney Avenue is planted with native trees and elegantly landscaped sidewalks to enhance pedestrian movement. The project also flanks the Woodall Rodgers Freeway in downtown and will have spectacular views of the future Santiago Calatrava-designed bridges at the Trinity River. The parking garage also has a section below-grade for private residential parking and a separate section above-grade for joint use between the project’s residential, office and retail components. The landscaped amenity deck, along with the tree-lined streets, establishes exemplary open space and enhanced outdoor urban living space. In addition, access to public transportation is provided at the corner of McKinney Avenue and Akard Street via the McKinney Avenue Trolley and regional Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) bus lines. Preferred parking is given to low-emitting vehicles, carpools and fuel-efficient vehicles, changing rooms and bicycle storage is available to occupants of both towers, and the native landscaping helps conserve precious water resources.

Other specific factors contributing to its LEED certification include the following:

 

Sustainable Site

  • Sustainable Site Selection – The site is a previously developed paved parking lot;
  • Development Density & Community Connectivity – ½ mile radius includes the Arts District, Uptown, Victory Park, the Crescent and the West End;
  • Brownfield Redevelopment – The site is on the edge of the Victory Park redevelopment, which is a nationally recognized EPA exemplary brownfield redevelopment;
  • Public Transportation Access – The site is within ½ mile of DART, TRE and MATA services;
  • Bicycle Storage and Changing Rooms – The project is providing 14 bike racks and five showers;
  • Low Emitting and Fuel-Efficient Vehicles – The project is providing 50 preferred parking spaces for fuel-efficient vehicles;
  • Parking Capacity – The project is sharing parking spaces between the office and residential towers to minimize the number of parking spaces provided;
  • Protect and Restore Native Habitat – The landscaped 7th floor amenity deck provides more native habitat than there is site outside of the building footprint;
  • Maximize Open Space – The open space at the amenity deck plus the open space at street level equals 43% of the site area;
  • Non-Roof Heat Island Effect – The project includes 100% covered parking;
  • Roof Heat Island Effect – The project includes 100% light-colored roofing materials;
  • Tenant Design and Construction Guidelines – Design and construction guidelines have been developed for the future tenants including requirements to meet LEED-CI certification.

Water Efficiency

  • Water Efficient Landscaping – 62% of the plant material will be drought-tolerant native and adapted species, irrigated with an evapo-transpiration controller and a drip-irrigation system;
  • Water Use Reduction – Plumbing fixtures will be selected to exceed the 30% level based on LEED version 2.2 requirements and meet the 30% level for LEED version 3 requirements.

Energy and Atmosphere

  • Enhanced Commissioning – In addition to the commissioning agent’s involvement during the design process, the facilities management team is receiving training prior to the completion of construction;
  • Enhanced Refrigerant Management – Refrigerants are not being used on the project;
  • Measurement & Verification (M&V) of Base Building – The M&V Plan will be applied to the overall building energy use;
  • Green Power – 35% of power purchased for the building will come from renewable resources.

Materials and Resources

  • Recycled Content – The project is being constructed with materials that include 22% recycled content;
  • Regional Materials – 41% of the project’s building materials are from regional resources.

Indoor Environmental Quality

  • Outdoor Air Delivery Monitoring – Carbon Dioxide monitoring will be provided for all densely occupied spaces and 15% additional air will be provided for non-densely occupied spaces;
  • Increased Ventilation – The HVAC system will include a Building Management System (BMS) that adjusts the Variable Air Volume (VAV) boxes to provide increased ventilation as needed;
  • Construction IAQ Management Plan During Construction – The contractor is following the IAQ Management Plan during construction with new filters provided prior to occupancy;
  • Low-Emitting Materials
    • Adhesives and Sealants – The project has been designed and built to use low-VOC adhesives and sealants;
    • Paints and Coatings – The project has been designed and built to use low-VOC paints and coatings;
    • Carpet Systems – The project has been designed and built to use low-VOC carpet systems;
    • Composite Wood and Agrifiber Products – The project has been designed and built to use composite wood products that contain no added urea-formaldehyde resins.
  • Thermal Comfort Design – The project is designed to meet the ASHRAE Standard 55 – 2004 Guidelines.
  • Daylight & Views
    • Using the Glazing Factor Calculation Method, 81% of the occupied space is day-lit to a minimum level of 2% glazing factor;
    • From a seated position, views to the outdoors will be available to 91% of the occupied spaces.

Innovation in Design

  • Exemplary Performance SSc5.1 was achieved for the protection and restoration of native habitat due to the large amount of native and adapted plant material at the amenity deck;
  • Exemplary Performance SSc5.2 was achieved for the maximization of open space due to the large amount of open space at the amenity deck;
  • Exemplary Performance SSc7.1 was achieved for the reduction of non-roof heat island effect by parking 100% of the vehicles for the project under cover;
  • Exemplary Performance MRc5 was achieved for the use of regional building materials by exceeding the 40% level of regional materials;
  • LEED Accredited Professionals – The majority of team members involved in the project’s design were LEED Accredited Professionals.

In addition to Dallas-based Good Fulton & Farrell as the architect and TBG Partners’ Dallas office as the landscape architect and site planner, other project team members include Dallas-based Austin Commercial as the general contractor; Dallas-based Pacheco Koch as the civil engineer;  Dallas-based L.A. Fuess Partners, Inc. as the structural engineer; Dallas-based JJA, Inc. as the mechanical engineer; Dallas-based Granite Properties as the developer for the office building; and Dallas-based Gables Residential as the developer for the residential building.

ABOUT TBG PARTNERS

As one of the top landscape architecture and planning firms in the Southwest, TBG Partners designs mixed-use and residential communities, corporate campuses, civic buildings, resorts, healthcare and educational facilities, city parks and historic sites. With a strong commitment to the advancement of sustainable design principles, TBG encourages its employees to become LEED Accredited Professionals and its clients to utilize green building practices for their projects. Established in 1987, TBG has offices in Austin, Dallas/Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio. For more information, please visit www.tbg-inc.com.

ABOUT GRANITE PROPERTIES

Formed in 1991, Granite Properties is a privately held commercial real estate company with offices in Dallas, Houston, Atlanta and Denver. Granite Properties owns and operates more than 10 million square feet of real estate, consisting of a diversified product base of office, industrial and retail, both through acquisition and development.  Granite also has been recognized as one of the nation’s fastest-growing companies by Inc. magazine and as the 2008 Developer of the Year by the North Texas chapter of the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties (NAIOP). For more information, please visit www.graniteproperties.com

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Media Contact: Claire Bloxom
claire@coopersmithagency.com, (214) 329-9191