With 428,362 square feet of positive absorption in 2006 per CoStar and the lowest vacancy rate of any market in the Houston area at 7.2%, The Woodlands continues to experience strong commercial activity, according to Dan Leverett , vice president, commercial for The Woodlands Development Company (TWDC) , developer of The Woodlands.

Some of the new companies that made their entrée into The Woodlands in 2006 included Petroleum Wholesale, Smith Barney, Cargill, Foundry Networks, TFL and Newpark Resources . Three major companies - Tetra Technologies, Hughes Christensen and Huntsman - expanded their operations in The Woodlands.

In 2006, TWDC completed 21 Waterway Avenue, a 103,132-square foot Class A building on The Woodlands Waterway ® that is home to The Goose’s Acre and a Churrascos Restaurant (coming soon); a 14,000-square-foot, three-story retail building called 25 Waterway Avenue highlighting the recently opened 225 B Baker Street Pub & Grill and Chocolata (coming soon); and a 12,123-square-foot two-story, mixed-use building called 1701 Lake Robbins Drive , featuring Taco Milagro and Fidelity Investments .

Development is underway on 24 Waterway Avenue , a 13-story, 308,000-square-foot Class A office and retail building in Waterway Square along The Woodlands Waterway. Other buildings planned for Waterway Square include 20 Waterway Square , consisting of two buildings for specialty restaurants overlooking a water wall and fountains that will have specialty lighting and be choreographed to music. Also planned is a luxury condominium tower and boutique hotel, as well as two additional office buildings.
Source: TWDC