- For a city of roughly 80,000 Baytown has a significant volume of construction underway.
- One multifamily developer recently backed away from a large mixed-use project in Baytown.
- Most of the projects completed in Baytown during the next two years will be delivered in 2017.
The Houston submarket of Baytown is expected to see the completion of roughly $30 billion of construction projects in the next two years, with a number of sectors playing their part.
However, construction activity within the oil and petrochemical sector is a major reason for the area’s construction boom.
At its Cedar Bayou plant, Exxon Mobil Corp. and Chevron Phillips Chemical Co. are underway on a $6 billion plant expansion. The groups are building chemical crackers to process polyethylene from natural gas.
In response to this plant expansion a number of logistics firms are developing new warehouse spaces nearby.
The plant expansion is on schedule to begin producing ethylene by mid-2017 and an additional plant expansion could be in the works.
Last month, Air Products broke ground on a $350 million steam methane reformer plant in Baytown. The plant will be constructed at Covestro’s Baytown facility, which currently employs 1,100. The plant is slated to open in 2019.
Retail construction is also playing a part in Baytown’s building environment. Fidelis Realty Partners is currently redeveloping/demolishing the San Jacinto Mall with plans to construct a one-million-square-foot, open-air center.
Residential construction in Baytown
On the housing side of things, Baytown’s rental market has seen the recent delivery of new product, with several other developments either underway or in the pipeline.
In May, Stanmore Partners is slated to deliver a 283-unit project on Eastpoint Blvd. During this time last year, Leyendecker delivered a 240-unit project.
While Hunington Properties expects to start a 240-unit project, with a summer 2017 proposed opening, the developer recently stated that its 200-acre mixed-use project in Baytown has been put on the shelf. Located at State highway 146 the site was slated to include 480 multifamily units and acreage for 500 single-family homes.
