Edward A. Thomas Building

The Edward A. Thomas Building,[2] or 1200 Travis, is a 28-story building in Downtown Houston, Texas that is currently occupied by the Houston Police Department as its current headquarters. At one time it was known as the Houston Natural Gas Building.[3] The building houses HPD's administrative and investigative offices.[4]

1200 Travis
HPD headquarters in Downtown Houston
General information
StatusComplete
TypeOffice
Location1200 Travis Street, Downtown Houston, Texas
Coordinates29°45.318′N 95°22.053′W
Completed1967
OwnerCity of Houston
ManagementHines
Height
Roof386 ft (118 m)
Technical details
Floor count28
Floor area16,500 sq ft (1,530 m2)
Design and construction
ArchitectLloyd, Morgan & Jones
References
[1]

The building, with 575,000 square feet (53,400 m2) of rentable space, has a typical floor size of 16,500 square feet (1,530 m2). The police department's 40,000-square-foot (3,700 m2), three-floor crime laboratory, a 20,000-square-foot (1,900 m2) fitness center, a 5,000-square-foot (460 m2) voice/data room, a 10,000-square-foot (930 m2) 24-hour emergency tactical command center,[5] and a fingerprinting laboratory are located in the building.[6]

History

The building, originally the Entex Building, was built in 1967. A renovation in 1988 involved the installation of a new central plant. In 1994 the City of Houston bought the building to house the headquarters of the Houston Police Department. In February 1995 the Houston City Council unanimously voted to retain the Hines company as the development manager for the renovation of 1200 Travis.[5] In the 1990s Hercules Engineering and Testing Services received a contract to do testing in the renovated 1200 Travis building.[7] In October 1997 the $21 million renovation was completed.[5]

In 2007 the Houston Police Department announced that it was opening a gift shop inside the building.[8] The Museum, Gift Shop, and officers' memorial opened on May 12.[9]

In 2008 Harold Hurtt, the head of HPD, proposed a plan which would have involved the City of Houston selling 1200 Travis. In regards to a proposed new police headquarters, Hurtt said "It is not a building like 1200 Travis, which was built to be an office building."[4]

In 2011 Mayor of Houston Annise Parker said that the city is considering selling the 1200 Travis facility so that the city will not have to lay off 273 jailers.[10] As of 2012 the facility is for sale.[11]

  • 1200 Travis

See also

References
  1. http://www.hines.com/property/detail.aspx?id=385
  2. "hpd_beat_map.pdf" (PDF). City of Houston. Retrieved 2020-03-11. Edward A. Thomas Building 1200 Travis
  3. "Display Ad 96 -- No Title." Chicago Tribune. March 11, 1979. S20. Retrieved on April 9, 2010. "Houston Natural Gas Building. 1200 Travis. Houston, Texas 77002."
  4. Apocada, Gene. "HPD to make major changes." KTRK-TV. Friday February 8, 2008. Retrieved on April 9, 2010.
  5. "Houston Police Department Headquarters Renovation." Hines. Retrieved on April 28, 2010.
  6. Mendoza, Moises. "HPD fingerprinting trouble not unique." Houston Chronicle. December 13, 2009. Retrieved on April 9, 2010.
  7. Burtman, Bob. "Shuffling Funds." Houston Press. Thursday April 16, 1998. 1. Retrieved on April 9, 2010.
  8. Glenn, Mike. "HPD has plans to open a new kind of storefront: a gift shop." Houston Chronicle. October 26, 2007. Retrieved on April 9, 2010.
  9. "Museum." Houston Police Department. Retrieved on July 21, 2010.
  10. Connelly, Richard. "City Selling Its Downtown HPD Headquarters, Preventing Jailer Layoffs." Houston Press. Wednesday May 18, 2011. Retrieved on March 3, 2012.
  11. Moran, Chris. "New downtown campus on HPD wish list." Houston Chronicle. Wednesday June 6, 2012. Retrieved on June 7, 2012.
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