Overview
Once the hub of the city’s U.S. mail system, the long-abandoned USPS headquarters in Houston was transformed by Lovett Commercial into a dynamic mixed-use complex expanding the city’s vibrant downtown. The project aims to be an adaptive reuse cultural epicenter, linking the city’s past with its future and strategically connecting neighborhoods, the theater district, and a park. The site’s design reimagines the Cold War structural rigidity of the historic building, repurposing it as office space and for public use where visitors can enjoy food, cultural and social activities, and a rooftop park. Additional focus was given to sustainability with the installation of a green roof and native material throughout as well as creating regionally specific landscapes.
Ruppert was presented with a Gold Award in the National Association of Landscape Professionals’ Awards of Excellence in program (Installation category) in 2023.
Scope
The project involved the installation of 3300 SF of pavers; 900 LF of pre-cast planters and seat walls; 145 tons of gravel; 5500 CY of soil; 420 yards of mulch; a Maxi Com irrigation system with 24,450 LF of lines (main/lateral/drip) and a pump station; drainage that included 81,800 SF of Columbia Green intensive layered system, 4250 SF of filter fabric and 118,000 CF of structural foam; 68,500 SF of jute netting; 500 LF of steel edging; 6500 SF of synthetic turf; 30,400 SF of sod; 275 trees, 2200 shrubs, 24,500 perennials and site amenities.
