AUSTIN, Texas — Editor's note: The related video is a report from Facebook's expansion in Austin in 2019.
Austin’s soon-to-be tallest building has a new tenant – California-based Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook.
According to a report from the Austin Business Journal, Meta has leased the entire commercial half of the building at West Sixth and Guadalupe streets, a 66-story tower currently under construction. Developers say the building will be 840 feet tall once finished. It will also feature 349 residential units, from floors 34 to 66.
The ABJ said Meta signed a lease on Dec. 31 for 589,000 square feet across 33 floors at the skyscraper.
“We first came to Austin over 10 years ago with just seven employees, now over 2,000 of us are proud to call Austin home. We’re committed to Austin and look forward to growing here together,” Katherine Shappley, head of Meta's Austin office and vice president for commerce customer success, told the ABJ.
Meta is already looking to hire around 400 people in the Austin area, a number that could grow significantly as the company expands in the region.
The lease is the largest ever in Downtown Austin and larger than the entire Frost Bank Tower in terms of square feet.
Currently, the tallest building in Austin is The Independent, which has been called "The Jenga Tower" by locals. It's around 685 feet tall.
To read the full ABJ report, click here.
PEOPLE ARE ALSO READING: