New tenant coming to BullStreet with new building announced, largest of its kind in SC
A first-of-its-kind in Columbia office and retail building is planned to be constructed at the city’s BullStreet district, bringing with it a new business tenant and, hopefully, more to follow.
Columbia law firm Robinson Gray Stepp & Laffitte plans to move into the top two floors of an upcoming five-story building, planned to be constructed along Pickens Street near the newly opened REI Co-op store, BullStreet officials announced Thursday.
The first floor of the building is planned to house retail stores, while the remaining floors will offer Class-A office space. The law firm’s 28,000 square feet of space will include a private rooftop terrace.
The new construction, called the WestLawn building, will be made of what’s known as mass timber, or cross-laminated timber, which is considered an environmentally sustainable construction technology compared to more typical steel and cement construction. The WestLawn building will be the first mass timber office building in Columbia and the largest of its kind in South Carolina, BullStreet offiicals say.
At 75,000 square feet, it will be smaller than BullStreet’s 108,000-square-foot First Base Building office complex, which was the largest private office building built in Columbia in the past decade. It houses Ogletree Deakins law firm, Capgemini global technology firm, Founders Federal Credit Union and Central Carolina Community Foundation.
Construction of the WestLawn building is expected to be completed in the first half of 2022.
It’s the latest development announced for the 181-acre BullStreet campus, formerly home to the state’s mental hospital and now being transformed into one of the largest commercial developments on the East Coast. Its signature feature thus far is the Segra Park minor league baseball stadium, home to the Columbia Fireflies.
BullStreet has been growing slowly but steadily, recently welcoming REI Co-op and the opening of the upscale Merrill Gardens senior living community. In the works, a Starbucks restaurant is under construction and expects to open early next year, new townhomes are under construction, and work has begun on a future apartment and retail development anchored by the historic Williams Building.
The district faced a major setback with a recent fire at the historic Babcock Building, a centerpiece of the campus that is slated to be developed into around 200 apartments. The developer has indicated it intends to move ahead with the apartments despite the recent damage.
This story was originally published October 15, 2020 at 10:19 AM.
