The Texas A&M University System has announced Discovery Tower, Life Tower, and Horizon Tower as the names of the three buildings in the Texas A&M Innovation Plaza, its 5-acre campus in Houston.
The Texas A&M Innovation Plaza is located at the intersection of Holcombe Boulevard and Main Street near the Texas Medical Center. The mixed-use campus focuses on collaboration in engineering, medicine, research and education.
The Texas A&M University System acquired and renovated an 18-story office building on Holcombe Boulevard, making it the home for EnMed, a two-degree program that allows students to earn a master's degree in engineering and a medical degree from the Texas A&M.
The building, named Discovery Tower, opens later this year. It supports EnMed and the rest of Texas A&M's engineering, research, innovation, medical, and life science programs.
"EnMed is just the first example of innovation that Texas A&M System intends to bring to the Texas A&M Innovation Plaza," Texas A&M System Chancellor John Sharp said. "We are excited to have such a visible location in the Texas Medical Center."
The Texas A&M University System's public-private partnership developer will bring an additional investment of $401 million, fulfilling the unmet needs in the area with two complementary towers totaling an additional 1.9 million square feet.
Life Tower is scheduled to be completed in June of 2022. The 19-story, 714-bed student housing tower will contain a large garage, parking for 2,714 vehicles, and retail and dining facilities. Texas A&M medical students and Prairie View A&M University nursing students will be given priority for housing, but students from other institutions can fill available slots, the University said.
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Horizon Tower, a 17-story, 485,000 square-foot integrated building, is scheduled to be completed in January of 2024. Horizon Tower will be built atop a 13-story parking structure, and it will be used for life sciences, clinical, biomedical, technology and office purposes.
Texas A&M Innovation Plaza will provide green spaces and lifestyle amenities for the campus population and visitors alike. The groundbreaking is scheduled for late 2020.
Texas A&M Innovation Plaza is located near the METRO TMC Station, providing access to the Texas Medical Center, Museum District, and Downtown Houston via bus and light rail service.
The developer for the projects is Houston-based Medistar Corporation. The infrastructure investment firm American Triple I Partners, founded by Texas A&M alum Henry Cisneros, is part of the financing team.
