7700 Parmer Calls for Transformation to a Mixed-Use Destination

AUSTIN, TX—Following city council approval, Accesso plans to expand the 911,574-square-foot 7700 Parmer office campus into a mixed-use lifestyle community comprising multifamily, retail, office and hospitality properties. Situated adjacent to Apple’s future $1 billion campus, which will initially house 5,000 employees, the 129-acre 7700 Parmer site is currently home to a wide range of tech companies.

As part of the development plan, Accesso will add 1,800 multifamily units, 80,000 square feet of retail, 800,000 square feet of office and a 340-room hotel to serve the thousands of tech employees residing in or relocating to Northwest Austin.

“We are grateful to the city council for recognizing the need for this development and allowing us to move forward with our vision to create a dynamic mixed-use community at 7700 Parmer,” says Marc Bellet, director, asset management and national director of development for Accesso. “In recent years, Austin has become a true tech hub and continued to lead the country in population and job growth. Northwest Austin, traditionally a suburban area of the city, is now home to many of the world’s biggest names in tech, which has created strong demand for the types of housing, recreation and hospitality assets that draw top talent. Between Apple’s upcoming campus and the master-planned development that is expected to take shape on the 7,000-acre Robinson Ranch, we believe we are at the forefront of a transformation.”

The office campus at 7700 Parmer is one of the flagship office properties in Austin, given its prime location and ample amenities. The property boasts a 540-seat food hall, an auditorium, an onsite preschool, a daycare center, a full-service fitness center, an outdoor running trail, volleyball courts and outdoor basketball courts. Construction plans for the expansion are taking shape now.

“There is no set timeline at this point, but we are hoping to begin planning a portion of the office, retail and multifamily components in the next 12 months, with pre-leasing for the new office buildings expected to launch in the first quarter of 2021,” Bellet tells GlobeSt.com. “We are currently planning for the first phase to consist of two office buildings of around 250,000 square feet and one residential project of around 300 units, as well as some ancillary retail, which are expected to start at the end of 2021/early 2022.”

At this point, the hotel has not been identified, but ultimately it will be what the market dictates, Bellet tells GlobeSt.com.

“As the city continues to grow, adding multifamily, retail and hotel services around office nodes makes sense,” says David E. Putman, a principal at Aquila Commercial who serves as the office leasing agent for 7700 Parmer. “With more than 900,000 square feet of office on the ground and 800,000 square feet planned, expanding 7700 Parmer to provide housing and services for over 12,000 employees between the 7700 Parmer and Apple office campuses will reduce commute times and allow people to live closer to where they work.”

Despite deteriorating fundamentals, the hotel market is expected to begin a recovery next year. For 2021, CBRE is forecasting a RevPAR gain of 33.9%, but not surpassing 2019 levels until 2024. In addition, Austin’s hotel supply growth continues to climb, increasing 6.5% versus the rate of 4.4% during the past four quarters.