Buyers plan hotel conversion for part of Dallas’ tallest tower

Two of Dallas’ most prominent developers are planning a $350 million redevelopment of the city’s tallest skyscraper.

Mike Hoque of Hoque Global and Mike Ablon of PegasusAblon acquired the 72-story Bank of America Plaza building at 901 Main Street from Chicago-based Metropolis Holdings with plans for redevelopment, D Magazine reported.

Hoque and Ablon plan to add a 300-key hotel with a 69th-floor reflective pool and a major revamp of the streetscape surrounding the building. The price wasn’t disclosed, and the lender wasn’t identified; the Dallas Central Appraisal District values the 1.85 million-square-foot tower at $130 million, or $70 per square foot.

The building is losing its namesake tenant as Bank of America is downsizing to 238,000 square feet in KDC’s in-development Parkside Uptown, leaving a 500,000-square-foot hole at 901 Main Street.

Metropolis bought the building in 1998 for about $300 million, or $162 per square foot.

Much of the adjacent land, currently used for parking, will be transformed into restaurants, shops and public spaces.

Hoque, whose firm recently parted ways with Fort Worth as developer of the South Side urban village, has long had his eye on the iconic skyscraper.

“We didn’t just want to buy the building to buy the building,” Hoque said. “We wanted to do something that will change the area — it needs it. It’s what links everything. We wanted to do something catalytic.”

Ablon is a visionary behind the transformation of the Dallas Design District.

“There’s a $3 billion convention center coming two blocks over, and we’re going to be at the front door,” Ablon said.

“If you can spur street life, then people want to be there, and if people want to be there, then great things happen, and you have a self-fulfilling prophecy.”

His architectural and urban-planning background inform his approach.

“Office tenants and hotel guests don’t typically mix well, so we’re designing separate lobbies and entrances to keep each experience distinct,” he said.

Beyond aesthetics, the project could have a lasting impact on downtown Dallas’ economy. Hoque and Ablon are already in talks with the Texas Stock Exchange to anchor the office portion of the building.

— Andrew Terrell