Worldwide Financial institution of Commerce (IBC) Financial institution plans to show one in all its downtown workplace buildings right into a lodge, in keeping with an utility filed with the Metropolis of San Antonio.
IBC Financial institution is without doubt one of the newest property homeowners in downtown San Antonio scrambling to search out new makes use of for vacant area.
IBC Financial institution utilized to show one in all its buildings at 175 E. Houston St. right into a 300 key lodge. The Laredo-based financial institution owns two buildings at IBC Centre, an workplace complicated in-built 1984 between the River Stroll and Houston, St. Mary’s and Travis streets.
AT&T had used the buildings as its headquarters earlier than the corporate moved to Dallas. The taller constructing on Houston and St. Mary’s Avenue may quickly develop into a lodge.
As of Tuesday, metropolis information present {that a} evaluation of the applying was permitted Monday and the town is ready on charges to maneuver ahead. IBC Financial institution requested to fulfill with metropolis officers on Oct. 2.
The financial institution didn’t touch upon the challenge, however metropolis information describe it because the renovation of an workplace high-rise to create a lodge, in addition to a brand new parking storage with 4 ranges of facilities. The challenge would value an estimated $140 million.
IBC Financial institution isn’t the one downtown firm to shift gears with its workplace area. Danny Khalil tracks the industrial and residential actual property marketplace for CoStar, which owns Houses.com. He’s seen a rise in workplace conversion in San Antonio.
“There may be extra dialog, planning, and critical proposals for changing these buildings than there was a few years in the past,” Khalil stated in an e mail. “With bulletins like IBC’s, in addition to deliberate conversions such because the Nix, Highpoint Towers, and the Tower Life Constructing, it’s clear that there’s some critical dialogue about this.”
The Nix, Highpoint Towers and Tower Life Constructing are all in varied levels of being transformed into residences.
Khalil added that buildings just like the IBC Centre may be harder to transform into lodge or residing areas as a result of their design. Buildings from the Eighties are inclined to have giant floorplans, brutalist structure and fewer pure mild.
“Many within the improvement world expressed skepticism concerning the concept of turning 80s-vintage workplace buildings into condominium complexes or accommodations,” he stated.
It will probably even be tough to transform areas just like the Tower Life Constructing, he added, regardless that they’re older and have extra pure lighting and higher design options for residential makes use of.
“Whereas the dialog has undoubtedly progressed from ideation to planning for a lot of of those 80s builds, there are nonetheless only a few examples of late-Twentieth-century workplace high-rises being efficiently transformed into accommodations or residences,” Khalil stated.
Gradual years for accommodations
IBC Financial institution wouldn’t start development till April, in keeping with its allow utility, however the downtown hospitality market has been sluggish for accommodations in 2024 and 2025.
“The lodge trade may be very gentle in the mean time,” stated Robert Thrailkill. “It’s been a tough 12 months general.”
Thrailkill labored as a lodge common supervisor and government for greater than 4 a long time. For the previous 15 years, that’s been in San Antonio. He stated 2026 may very well be a tough 12 months, as properly.
Not less than one downtown lodge has closed this 12 months, although lodge administration didn’t touch upon the explanations for that closure.
Resort Havana, a 27-room boutique lodge positioned on Navarro Avenue and the River Stroll, introduced that it could shut on Oct. 20.
Shane Hamilton, the lodge’s common supervisor, didn’t touch upon the lodge’s closure, however mentioned the broader downtown lodge trade. “2025 normally has in all probability been the slowest 12 months since markets reopened,” Hamilton stated. “However there’s nonetheless enterprise, there’s nonetheless traction.”
Motels on the western aspect of downtown are additional away from the conference middle, Thrailkill added, making it more durable to draw these prospects. They may very well be nearer to a deliberate baseball stadium for the San Antonio Missions, although.
Thrailkill stated any future financial exercise within the space may change the lodge trade.
