Guess which up-and-coming downtown Austin office tower is now almost half-leased?

A global law firm has signed a lease in the Republic, a 48-story office tower that is rising just south of Republic Square in downtown Austin.

It's a milestone for the building, bringing it to almost 50% leased more than a year before the high-rise at 401 W. Fourth St. is scheduled to open in mid-2025.

International law firm O’Melveny & Myers LLP will lease 28,000 square feet of space in the Republic. The building, which broke ground in 2022, is being developed by Dallas-based Lincoln Property Co., one of the largest private real estate firms in the United States; Dallas-based Phoenix Property Co.; and DivcoWest, a real estate investment firm headquartered in San Francisco.

The O’Melveny law firm has more than 800 attorneys in 18 offices across three continents. Founded in Los Angeles, the firm opened its first Texas office in Austin in 2021 and has continued to expand in Austin, Dallas and Houston.

“O’Melveny is continuing to expand our presence in the Texas market, and we’re delighted by the welcome we’ve received in the Lone Star State,” said Teresa Doremus, O’Melveny’s managing director of Global Operations and Real Estate. “Our new, modern, 28,000-square-foot space in the Republic will both accommodate our current Austin team and provide us with needed space for our anticipated growth.”

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O’Melveny is the second global law firm to sign a lease in the Republic.

Kirkland & Ellis LLP has committed to occupy 137,000 square feet of space. Another tenant will be Austin-based Vista Equity Partners, which has leased 200,000 square feet of space.

“National and global professional services firms continue to expand in Austin, and the Republic provides the marquee location and best-in-class amenities these companies seek to help attract and retain top talent,” said Seth Johnston, executive vice president with Lincoln Property.

Designed by North Carolina-based Duda|Paine Architects, the Republic will have views of Lady Bird Lake and will connect to Republic Square Park — the building’s historic namesake. In addition to being the only building that opens to a full block of park space downtown, every office floor of the Republic will have a 750-square-foot terrace.

“We’re delighted with leasing momentum achieved at this point in the construction timeline at the Republic,” said Costa Petrunoff, DivcoWest's managing director. Petrunoff said tenants are seeking "the quality and prestige" of the Republic, which has amenities designed by the award-winning Michael Hsu Office of Architecture.

The Republic will have a public plaza with an outdoor bar, along with ground-floor retail space. There also will be a locker room and showers, and storage space for about 350 bicycles.

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A 19th-floor amenity level will have more than 50,000 square feet of indoor-outdoor space, including conference rooms, a fitness center and spin room, a club room with a lounge and bar, and an outdoor terrace.

In Austin, Duda|Paine Architects also designed Frost Bank Tower, which became a landmark on Austin's skyline at Fourth Street and Congress Avenue downtown when it opened 20 years ago. Duda|Paine also designed Colorado Tower and 405 Colorado in downtown Austin, as well as Palisades West off of Bee Cave Road and Capital of Texas Highway (Loop 360).

When the Republic broke ground, Turan Duda, Duda|Paine's founding principal, told the Statesman: "It was important for us to design a building that is a singular sculpted form and iconic as a landmark next to the historically important Republic Square."

"Austin is a city that is seeing exponential growth and the skyline is blossoming with new towers every day," Duda wrote in an email at the time.

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"Since the building has been pulled back (60 feet) from the street, it has, in essence expanded the park," Duda wrote. "This relationship to a gracious open space allows for a building that can be viewed in totality from top to bottom."

At its groundbreaking, Johnston said the Republic is "prime for new corporate headquarters or companies looking to expand into the Austin market."

The Republic is a couple of blocks from what is for now the tallest building on Austin's skyline, the Sixth and Guadalupe tower. The 66-story mixed-use tower also was developed by Lincoln Property, partnering in that project with Kairoi Residential.

Lincoln and Kairoi also are developing the 74-story Waterline tower. That building, in downtown's Rainey Street District, will become the tallest tower in Austin — and all of Texas — when it opens in late 2026.

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This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: The Republic downtown Austin office tower is nearly half-leased