HOUSTON — Morales Capital Group, an affiliate of Mexcor International, has unveiled redevelopment plans for Viva Center, a 2.3 million-square-foot office and warehouse complex on a 66-acre site in Houston. The developer plans to revitalize the facility to support the research and development of liquid-cooled IT equipment for supercomputing.
Eduardo Morales, CEO of Mexcor International and Morales Capital Group, says he envisions the newly rebranded Viva Center as “a transformative tech hub that seamlessly blends Houston’s rich history with futuristic innovations. With a focus on integrating cutting-edge infrastructure and next-gen application platforms, Viva Center aims to lead the charge in shaping Houston’s technological landscape for years to come.”
Morales bought the property in 2022. The asset is part of a larger, sprawling, 300-acre campus that once served as the headquarters of Compaq, which was the largest home computer manufacturer of the 1990s. Fellow tech giant Hewlett-Packard bought Compaq in 2002 and has gradually sold off pieces of the campus, finally leaving the site entirely for a newly built, smaller building in the suburbs in 2022. For example, in 2009, Lone Star College purchased 1.2 million square feet of the property and turned it into a branch of the college.
VivaVerse Solutions LLC will lead the Viva Center revitalization. Morales and Freddy Vaca founded the venture to specialize in high-density, immersion-cooling data center solutions aimed at catering to the needs of hyperscalers (data center developers that need to increase size quickly).
Viva Center offers 1.3 million square feet of industrial space and one million square feet of office and tech lab space. The campus offers amenities such as conference facilities, 6,000-plus garage parking spaces, a full-service cafeteria, fitness center and an outdoor pavilion. The facility is connected to the adjacent 80-acre Kickerillo-Mischer Preserve by a network of hiking and bike trails.
Brandi Sikes and Liz Westcott of SVN | J. Beard Real Estate’s greater Houston office will handle leasing at the office buildings on behalf of Morales Capital Group. Recently, Sikes and Westcott facilitated a 54,247-square-foot lease. The tenant, SynergenX, was represented by Chris Sacco of Lumicre.
— Channing Hamilton and Jeff Shaw