The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat Launches Texas Chapter
July 28, 2025
The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) has officially established its newest regional chapter in Texas. Since early 2024, a dedicated team of industry-leading architects and engineers from Austin, Dallas, and Houston has worked to develop this new chapter, recognizing the state’s rapidly evolving urban landscape and growing high-rise development.
The CTBUH Texas chapter is launching with three networking events designed to bring together the state’s high-rise development community. Austin’s networking event was held this past week in the heart of downtown with speakers from the global CTBUH Headquarters, CEO Javier Quintana de Uña, and Director of Global Development, Jen Hall. KPF Principal, Forth Bagley, AIA, followed with an in-depth look at Waterline, Austin’s first supertall building and the tallest tower in Texas that recently topped out at 74 stories. Event attendees joined from various industries within the field; developers, architects, engineers, and industry professionals involved in Texas’ high-rise design and construction sectors came out to hear about the newest chapter of CTBUH.
About CTBUH
Based in Chicago, The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat is a global nonprofit organization dedicated to examining how greater urban density and vertical development can create more sustainable and livable cities. Since its establishment in 1969, the organization has focused on critical areas including:
• Social effects of high-rise construction
• Creation of diverse urban environments
• Adaptive reuse strategies
• Community livability
• Preservation of natural ecosystems within urban settings
The Council hosts annual conferences featuring programming from renowned firms, building tours, and the prestigious Tall Building Awards recognizing excellence in design, engineering, construction, and development processes. The quarterly CTBUH Journal publishes peer-reviewed research, project case studies, and interviews with prominent professionals in the architecture, engineering, and construction industry.
Pictured from left to right: Brett Rhode, Kris Swanson, Mide Akinsade, Forth Bagley, Jen Hall, Irma Reiner, Javier Quintana de Uña, Brandon Townsend.
Texas Chapter Leadership - Founding Members
• Brett Rhode, Rhode Partners, Austin
• Irma Reiner, Corgan, Dallas
• Mide Akinsade, atelierMIDE, Houston
• Kristopher Swanson, DCI Engineers, Austin
• Brandon Townsend, Stantec, Austin
• Brent Wenger, Walter P Moore, Austin
Co-Chair Brett Rhode of Rhode Partners, an Austin-based architecture and interior design firm, explains the chapter’s formation: “After years of attending CTBUH conferences across the US and other countries, it became apparent that Texas should have its own chapter as our urban landscape transforms. The state’s unprecedented growth in high-rise development across multiple cities creates unique opportunities and challenges that warrant focused collaboration and knowledge sharing.”
Co-Chair Irma Reiner of Corgan, a Dallas based architecture and interior design firm, explains the chapters focus: “As a chapter, our goal is to explore the next generation of urbanism by sharing sustainable solutions, emerging trends in AEC, and the unique combination of culture and climate in Texas. The speed of growth in our state is phenomenal, and we are excited to get Texas on the CTBUH map.”
Co-Chair Mide Akinsade of atelierMIDE, a Houston based Architecture and Urban design firm explains….” Texas has weathered economic shifts in its history—in cotton, cattle, and lumber. At the wake of the global green transition, AI, and the “work-from-anywhere” office model, similar shifts may loom for the energy and service markets. What should go between the on-ramp and the off-ramp in our cities? Between the lobby and the penthouse in our urban habitats? How do we marry “city as economic engine” with “city as urban habitat”? CTBUH Texas seeks to get ahead of these questions with designers, like minded organizations and policy makers….”
KPF Principal, Forth Bagley, AIA, gives a presentation on Waterline, a new mixed-use tower featuring a five-star hotel, luxury residences, office space, and retail along Waller Creek.