TEC Buys 17,000-SF Site for HQ, Selling 40,000-SF Existing Structure

AUSTIN-Buy one, sell one is the strategy being applied by Texas Electric Cooperative Inc., which is planning to relocate its corporate headquarters after spending 40 years at the same location in northwest Austin.

TEC has bought 17,000-sf of prime office space at 2550 Interstate 35 south in the state’s tightest office market while simultaneously finding a buyer, who is not being identified at this time, for its 40,000-sf site at 8140 Burnet Rd., Mike Williams, TEC president and CEO, tells GlobeSt.com.

Williams says TEC’s move is more strategic than anything else. The new site is closer to the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport and the state capital, where TEC is recognized as a leading advocate in legislative and regulatory issues. And, he says, the existing headquarters is “more than we need.” But more importantly, Williams emphasized to GlobeSt.com the new structure “is a building that better suits our needs.”

Williams says a buyer has been found for the Burnet Road property. A closing date has not been set for the property that TEC developed and expanded in the past 40 years. TEC employs 227 people, but not all will be relocated to the new headquarters, says Williams.

Jerry Heare, a corporate real estate specialist at NAI/CIP, is representing Texas Electric Cooperative Inc. in both transactions. The move is a smart one, says Heare, particularly in the Austin market where the office vacancy rate is at an all-time low of 3%.

TEC represents electrical cooperatives in Texas and provides a variety of trade association services, including legislative and regulatory advocacy. The company also produces utility poles and re-manufactures and repairs various electrical equipment.