Pennzoil Place
711 Louisiana
Houston, TX 77002
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Managed by
Transwestern and owned by Metropolis Investment Holdings, Inc.,
Pennzoil Place consists of two 36-story trapezoidal towers of
dark bronze glass and aluminum that are separated by a
10-foot-wide spatial void and connected by a 115-foot-high
glass atrium. The architectural design was the creation of Philip
Johnson. In formulating the design, Philip Johnson responded to
directives from J. Hugh Liedtke, Chairman of the Pennzoil Company,
for a building that was dignified in appearance but not
box-shaped. Gerald D. Hines Interests, the developer, wanted a
building that could provide a distinctive identity for more than
one major tenant. Therefore the idea for two buildings rather than
one was born. The reflective symmetry and 45-degree geometry of
the building have made it significant in architectural circles for
breaking the modernist glass box made popular by followers of
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and for introducing the era of postmodernism.
Pennzoil Place
was completed in 1975 and named "Building of the Year"
by famed New York Times architecture critic Ada Louise Huztable
due to the dramatic sculptural silhouette it added to the Houston skyline.
Pennzoil Place
earned the ENERGY STAR for superior energy performance as a result
of a series of replacements and retrofits to building lighting and
climate control. Lighting throughout the building was upgraded to
high-efficiency T-8 fluorescent lamps with electronic ballasts and
compact fluorescent lighting in the lobby, mechanical rooms,
loading docks, garage entrance/exit, and building perimeter. On
the HVAC side, variable frequency drives were installed on all
chill water pumps, all cooling tower cells were rebuilt, water
softeners and side stream filtration systems were installed on
the cooling tower, and automation controls were installed in the
central plant for trend monitoring that enabled operational
changes to improve efficiencies.
For 6
consecutive years, Transwestern has been recognized by the
EPA
as an ENERGY
STAR Partner of the Year (2004, 2005) and as a Sustained
Excellence Award Winner (2006 -
2010
) for our
outstanding contribution to
reducing
greenhouse gas emissions
through
leadership in energy management. Transwestern proactively embraced
the ENERGY STAR benchmarking program in 2002 as an additional way
to reduce property operating costs and to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
Communications:
Unavailable
Testimonial:
Unavailable
Please note: Narrative information in this profile has been provided by Mann Enterprises or a representative of this facility. Other building information was verified and submitted to EPA at the time of application. Building energy performance, operating characteristics, and ownership/management may be subject to change over time.
Building Owner:*
Mann Enterprises
Property Manager:*
Transwestern
Year(s) Labeled (Rating):
2007 (79)
2008 (75)
2009 (77)
2015 (90)
2016 (85)
Facility Type: Office
Total Floorspace: 1597385 sf
Year Constructed: 1973
Contract Type: None
Technologies Used:
Unavailable