Hines Market Square

Words: Dawn Kornegay
Photos: Camarata Masonry Systems, Ltd.

Hines Market Square, now known as Aris Market Square, is a mixed-use, multifamily development located in downtown Houston. The architect on this project, Ziegler Cooper, is known for reshaping the urban landscape. In keeping with their vision, the building was designed to blend with the old-style architecture of downtown Houston. This 327,345-square-foot, 33-story development contains 274 boutique-style residences, eight parking levels, and 9,000 square feet of retail space on the ground floor. Camarata Masonry Systems, Ltd. (CMS) was responsible for the considerable masonry scope on this project and knew this was going to be a landmark building in the heart of Houston’s Historic District.

CMS supplied and installed the following materials:

414,528 Acme ELP164 El Ricardo king-size brick
42,976 Acme PEP160 Steel Gray king-size brick
43,520 Acme PEP031 Ridgemar king-size brick for the tower exterior facade
1,350 cubic feet of cast stone for the parapet copings
91,500 Acme DTP120 Mark IV king-size brick for the podium levels 1-9
500 square feet of Giallo Ornamental polished granite at the front entry
880 units of Mojave Brown ground-face CMU at the loading dock screen wall
430 4-by-8-by-16 regular gray CMUs * 2,760 10-by-8-by-16 regular gray CMUs with water-repellent * 74,400 8-by-8-by-16 regular gray CMUs with water-repellent for partition walls on the garage level

Because the project is located in downtown Houston and the adjacent restaurant was expanding, the lack of workspace was the largest obstacle in the construction of this project. A combination of conventional frame, light swing stage scaffolding, and a four-point suspended scaffold system was used to build the facade of the tower. The swing stage scaffolding was required above the adjacent restaurant, while the four-point suspended scaffold system was designed to break into sections so the rest of the installation could be completed in a spiral sequence.

Additionally, the custom four-point system had two levels, which allowed other precedent trades to access a level above to complete their scope of work. This allowed CMS to follow closely behind with the installation of the brick veneer. All deliveries were just-in-time since the job site laydown space was nonexistent. Once the materials arrived, they were immediately distributed throughout the building. All mixing operations were performed on each floor, and the materials were distributed out of the window openings and balconies and onto the stages.

To enhance efficiency, two construction management tools were used on this project. BIM was used to coordinate the swing stage and four-point suspended scaffolding layout and to coordinate all the MEP penetrations. LEAN meetings were planned to prepare an efficient work plan and eliminate steps that did not have any value. LEAN was a key tool that helped prioritize the sequence of subcontractor access to the swing stage scaffolding in order to create a circular workflow.

Hines Market Square is on the list of residential towers developed under Houston’s Downtown Living Initiative, a city initiative to promote economic development and stimulate business and commercial activity by providing economic and other development incentives for certain new-family residential mixed-use developments. One thing that differentiates this building from most new buildings downtown is that the design pays homage to the old-style architecture in Houston by utilizing a brick facade. This project is a prime example of the efforts being made to create a cohesive and populated downtown environment and reshape the urban landscape toward a “live, work, play” lifestyle.

While the work had a significant risk of physical damage and personal injury, CMS worked almost 91,000 man-hours with no recordable or lost-time accidents. Finally, the workmanship on the facade is outstanding, with all conspicuous lines crisp and straight, and all reveals and accent details aligned perfectly with surrounding building elements. CMS is proud to have met its goal of providing innovative scaffolding solutions, allowing the efficient and safe installation of a high-quality, old-world masonry facade in the heart of downtown Houston.

Hines Market Square

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