Hines buys South Temple Tower, plans conversion to residential

Hines, a Houston-based global real estate firm, has acquired the South Temple Tower in downtown Salt Lake City and announced plans to convert the property to a residential building.

Hines said in a release that it plans to convert the 217,000-square-foot office building into a 255-unit luxury multifamily tower. With construction set to begin early next year, the renovation will include the complete removal of existing office spaces and repurposing the building for “high-quality residential living at a time when the Salt Lake City market is starved for much-needed housing,” the statement said. 

Hines is a multinational real estate owner and developer with a presence in 285 cities in 28 countries. Hines oversees investment assets under management totaling approximately $90.3 billion. The Salt Lake City project will be the company’s first office-to-residential conversion.

Hines said that after extensive analysis, South Temple Tower met the right requirements needed for a successful conversion process, including walkability, natural light, shape of the building, number of potential units and overall floor plan. 

The 24-story multifamily tower will feature studios and one-and-two-bedroom homes, paired with high-quality interior finishes and an expansive amenity offering, designed by Hickock Cole. As part of Hines’ environmental, social and corporate governance strategy, the adaptive reuse project will reduce embodied carbon by limiting new construction materials, including the production of concrete, which it said can be one of the largest emitters of embodied carbon in the construction industry. Through the implementation of more efficient mechanical systems once the building is in operation, Hines expects that it will lower the operational carbon emissions of the building over its lifecycle and new residential utilization.

“Downtown Salt Lake City is experiencing immense growth, with Utah having the second-highest population growth in the country over the last decade, and there is an undersupply of housing,” said Dusty Harris, senior managing director of Hines. “As a local resident, I’ve watched the office market shift and the residential market pick up speed since the dawn of the pandemic. Aligning with the company’s core values, Hines is stepping in to fill a need amongst the city’s residents, by delivering a sustainable high-rise product that will be new and highly attractive for this growing market.”