O’Donnell/Snider Construction (OSC), in partnership with Brave Architecture, served as construction manager for the Houston Zoo Headquarters, a 145,925-square-foot, five-story corporate headquarters and structured parking garage located within Hermann Park in Houston, Texas. The ground-up construction project was designed to consolidate the Zoo’s administrative operations into a modern workplace while expanding parking capacity to better serve the nearly two million guests who visit the Houston Zoo each year.
Designed to support the Zoo’s long-term operational, educational, and conservation initiatives, the new headquarters combines executive and administrative offices, conference rooms, employee collaboration spaces, break areas, and a dedicated multimedia production studio within a single facility. The integrated parking structure improves visitor access while reducing demand on surrounding public parking, creating a more efficient experience for staff, volunteers, and guests.
Sustainability played a central role in the project’s design and construction. Environmental features include an above-ground water storage system, rainwater harvesting infrastructure, and a cistern-fed irrigation system that supports an employee garden and landscape areas. These sustainable building strategies contribute to the facility’s goal of achieving LEED Silver Certification while reinforcing the Houston Zoo’s commitment to environmental stewardship and responsible resource management.
Constructing a major public facility within one of Houston’s busiest attractions required detailed preconstruction planning, extensive logistics coordination, and continuous communication among project stakeholders. Throughout construction, the Houston Zoo remained fully operational, with daily guest activities and animal care continuing without interruption. OSC developed a comprehensive logistics plan that maintained safe visitor circulation, protected animal habitats, coordinated material deliveries, and minimized disruptions across the active campus.
Through collaborative planning, phased construction management, and proactive stakeholder coordination, OSC successfully delivered a complex ground-up corporate headquarters and parking structure within an occupied public environment. The completed facility provides the Houston Zoo with a modern workplace, expanded parking capacity, and sustainable infrastructure designed to support its staff, conservation mission, and millions of visitors for decades to come.
The Houston Zoo Headquarters demonstrates OSC’s expertise in ground-up construction, corporate headquarters construction, parking garage construction, LEED-focused sustainable construction, and occupied campus development. Explore more of OSC’s ground-up construction portfolio to see how the team delivers complex facilities that support long-term organizational growth while maintaining safe, uninterrupted operations.
