Downtown San Antonio’s office shuffle just added a marquee listing on the River Walk. The 10-story tower at 146 Navarro St., the former CPS Energy headquarters, has been quietly put up for sale despite a recent multi-million-dollar makeover.
The building, which sits on top of a seven-story parking garage, remains largely empty. Its owner is now testing what a rare piece of downtown waterfront office real estate can fetch in a soft market.
Los Angeles-based BH Properties bought the property in 2021 for roughly $22.25 million and followed with upgrades to windows, outdoor seating, greenery, a refreshed lobby and about 20,000 square feet of street-level retail, according to San Antonio Express-News. The paper reported that purchase plus improvements push the owner’s total outlay above $30 million. The portion of the complex now being marketed is about 108,130 square feet of office space stacked above the garage.
Renovations and a quiet listing
BH Properties secured conceptual approval from the city’s review commission for a redesign and moved to position the property as Class A office with ground-floor retail, according to San Antonio Report. Commercial listings describe the Navarro complex as more than 100,000 square feet of office above roughly 600 parking spots, the kind of mix that usually helps leasing but so far has not delivered tenants here. The combination of riverfront retail and abundant parking has not translated into demand strong enough to fill the upper floors.
Downtown vacancy remains elevated
Cushman & Wakefield’s Q1 2026 MarketBeat shows the Central Business District’s office vacancy at about 18.4%, compared with 16.0% citywide, a gap that keeps pressure on owners of older, mid-market buildings. Cushman & Wakefield notes that the CBD’s vacancy rate dipped after the removal of a large vacant block for conversion, but overall availability remains a stubborn headwind for conventional office investors.
More signs owners are rethinking downtown
The Navarro listing lands as other downtown landlords recalibrate their strategies. An affiliate of Global Net Lease has put the 401,516-square-foot tower at 1010 N. St. Mary’s up for sale as AT&T relocates staff to a suburban complex, according to San Antonio Express-News. Nearby, a long-vacant CPS-era tower has been the subject of court filings and a prospective rescue sale, underscoring how some owners are ready to cut losses or pivot to hotel or residential uses. Hoodline outlined recent filings showing another nearby property nearing a deal after years idle.
What buyers will weigh
Any buyer stepping up for a River Walk address like this will have choices to make. They can gamble on office tenants returning in bigger numbers, try to reposition the building into a new use, or accept a longer stretch of vacancy while waiting for the leasing picture to improve.
The San Antonio Business Journal has previously detailed the kinds of restaurant and retail plans owners consider when they convert downtown offices into mixed-use destinations. For now, the 146 Navarro St. listing is a test case: will a renovated River Walk tower attract a buyer willing to bet on a downtown office recovery, or will the address be reinvented as a different kind of asset altogether?
