Cook Children's registers $652M West Tower finish-out

Cook Children’s has registered a $651,925,620 finish-out of its West Tower at 801 7th Avenue in Fort Worth, a 750,000 sq ft, 10-level build that would start Jan. 30, 2027 and run until Dec. 30, 2030.

Why it matters

The project was registered with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation as TABS2027002906 on Oct. 6, 2026, listing Cook Childrens Medical Center as owner and HKS Inc of Fort Worth as the design firm. The scope is the finish-out of the tower shell, covering 10 levels, three of them below grade.

For subcontractors, the key point is the length of the window: roughly four years of interior trade work on a single Fort Worth hospital campus.

The numbers

• Registered cost: $651,925,620.
• Size: 750,000 sq ft over 10 levels, three below grade.
• Cost per sq ft: $651,925,620 divided by 750,000 is about $869.
• Build window: Jan. 30, 2027 to Dec. 30, 2030, or 1,430 days.
• Lead time: Oct. 6, 2026 to Jan. 30, 2027 is 116 days.

A finish-out figure is not a ground-up figure. The record describes fitting out an existing tower shell, so the $869 per sq ft is fit-out cost, not structure. The tenant field reads “Not Assigned” and the work type is listed as new construction.

What’s next

A TDLR registration is a planned-project filing, not a contract award. The record does not name a general contractor,, so the buyout is still ahead during the 116 days before the January start.

This follows another Fort Worth hospital filing: see Texas Health Resources’ $150M Fort Worth patient tower. For the wider picture, see Dallas-Fort Worth coverage.