WeWork Announced As Tenant In New SXSW Center

AUSTIN, TEXAS — SXSW Conference and Festivals officials on Tuesday announced an agreement is in place for WeWork to open a 65,000 square foot co-working facility in the SXSW Center, the new corporate headquarters for SXSW.

Currently under construction, the Class A building in downtown Austin is scheduled to open in late 2019. WeWork will occupy three full floors of the building, which was designed by Yvonne Szeto and Bruce White with Pei Cobb Freed and Partners, an internationally acclaimed architecture firm based in New York City. Gensler is the architect of record for the project.

“We are thrilled to welcome WeWork as a tenant in our new headquarters building, their platform enables us to fulfill our goal of bringing in entrepreneurs and startups.” said Roland Swenson, CEO of SXSW and Co-Founder of CZ Properties. “The space is designed for collaborative work environments that allow the whole to be greater than the sum of its parts. SXSW believes in that same principle, and the SXSW Center is envisioned to be an extension of that ideal.”

WeWork's Nathan Lenahan, VP and General Manager for Mt West + Texas, added: "WeWork is growing a campus of opportunity across Austin as we continue to expand our footprint, and we could not be more excited to do so in the SXSW Center. Just this year during SXSW, WeWork has played host to or participated in over 40 different events and welcomed diverse guests from Charlize Theron to the Washington Post. "

Upon completion, the SXSW Center will bring an additional 145,000 square feet of office space to downtown Austin, officials noted. The building, which is targeting LEED Gold Certification, features a street level outdoor pavilion located in a grove of heritage oak trees. The rooftop of the building houses a 12,000 square foot “garden in the sky” with dramatic views of downtown Austin and the Texas State Capitol Building. Austin based dwg is the landscape architect.

Greenbelt Commercial (Greenbelt), a local real estate development firm, is the developer of the project and led negotiations on behalf of SXSW.

Victor Young, the managing principal of Greenbelt, commented on the synergy between the two entitities: “SXSW and WeWork are two innovative companies that will be great neighbors in this world class facility. As the construction phase of the project nears completion, I am excited for what the future holds for both organizations at the SXSW Center.”

More information about the building can be found at SXSWCenter.com.

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