Empira Bringing 35-Story Resi Tower to Downtown Dallas

Empira Group is chugging along with its plan for an apartment tower in downtown Dallas.

The Switzerland-based firm plans to construct a 35-story building with 370 units at 711 North Pearl Street, near Plaza of the Americas, the Dallas Morning News reported.

Floor plans will comprise a mix of studios, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments, with eight penthouses offering panoramic views of the city.

The project is slated for 8,660 square feet of ground-floor retail space and a seven-level parking garage with 515 spots. Amenities will include a pool, fitness center, co-working area, studio space and residents lounge.

Empira, whose founder is Lahcen Knapp, aims to start construction later this year and wrap up construction by 2026, the outlet said. It’s the firm’s first project in North Texas.

Few ground-up residential developments are in the works in downtown Dallas. However, a handful of developers are converting deserted office space into apartments — an increasingly common trend throughout the nation as remote-work trends continue to drive up office vacancies, prompting developers to repurpose struggling assets.

Office-to-residential projects in Dallas are expected to yield 2,000 multifamily units, according to Downtown Dallas Inc. Developers are primarily targeting older, outdated office buildings, which make up a large portion of downtown’s skyline.

Another downtown project that will create new housing is Hunt Realty Investments’ $5 billion plan to redevelop 20 acres surrounding the iconic Reunion Tower. The plan calls for the construction of 3,000 apartments, a hotel with 600 to 1,000 keys, 150,000 square feet of retail space, and up to 2 million square feet of office space, plus a park spanning 3 or 4 acres. Hunt wants to include up to 1,500 affordable apartments.

—Quinn Donoghue