Rendering of rooftop terrace at Printhouse (Courtesy: Lovett Commercial)

Repurposing old buildings isn’t something new, but metro Houston developers have some exciting projects on the horizon. Developers have plans to develop three unique buildings in the Houston area that have sat abandoned for years.

The City of Sugar Land recently announced PUMA Development has plans to preserve and redevelop the city’s most iconic building, the Imperial Char House, and the surrounding property. The structure was Imperial Sugar Co.’s centerpiece for more than a century until operations ceased in 2002. Since then, the refinery has sat vacant, but leaders hope PUMA’s vision can transform the relics that define the city.

“We have been working for over a year to find the right partner for the Imperial project that will do justice to the history of Imperial and the City of Sugar Land and develop the site to its full potential,” founder of Hunton Group R.O Hunton said in a press release. Hunton Group is the current property owner of all of Imperial’s historic buildings.

Plans are still in the early stages, but Mark Toon, founder and CEO of PUMA, provided some insight on what the development company would like to do with the Char House during a town hall. Toon, who is also co-founder of business incubator The Cannon, said he wants to open a location at the Char House to continue the city and county’s entrepreneurial spirit that once started with Imperial Sugar. The reimagined refinery could also include office space, retail, a restaurant and a rooftop bar offering a 360-degree view of the city. Toon said early estimates show it will take $45 million to $50 million to redevelop the eight-story building.

According to the release, the rest of the Imperial Historic District aims to be transformed into a walkable, mixed-use project with more food options, entertainment, office space, multi-family and single-family housing, green space and more.

Northwest of Sugar Land, a local developer hopes to turn one of Katy’s former rice dryer properties into a multi-use space featuring a beer garden, food hall, coworking and event space, and a museum that will be leased to the Katy Heritage Society, according to the Houston Business Journal. The historic J.V. Cardiff & Sons Rice Dryer, which stopped running in the early 1990s, can’t be missed when driving along I-10. Community Impact reports the developer hopes to open the property sometime early next year.

In Houston’s East Downtown, Lovett Commercial redeveloped the former historic Houston Post’s printing press building into a mixed-use development. The development is known as Printhouse and will include retail, office, entertainment and a rooftop terrace in addition to its anchor tenant, CVS Pharmacy, which opened earlier this year.