First envisioned in the late 1960s by local developer Kenneth L. Schnitzer,[1] Greenway Plaza has evolved into one of Greater Houston's largest employment centers, with over 4.4 million square feet (410,000 m2) of office space on a 52-acre (21-hectare) campus.

[2] Noted for its expansive green spaces and consistent modernist architectural style, Greenway Plaza is widely considered a pioneering example of mixed-use development in the United States.

[1][2][3] The campus's ten office towers are connected by an extensive system of air-conditioned skyways, tunnels, and underground parking garages.

[4] The Greenway Plaza development is part of a larger neighborhood, Greenway/Upper Kirby, which covers a 2.97-square-mile (7.7 km2) area roughly enclosed by Westheimer Road to the north, Bissonnet Street to the south, Uptown Houston to the west, and Shepherd Drive to the east.

[7] Century took realtors from outlying towns around Houston and had them buy individual parcels for very inexpensive prices while trying not to attract attention.

[6] Bill Schadewald of the Houston Press said that Greenway Plaza, which housed office towers, retail operations, a basketball arena, a movie theater, and a hotel, "defined the multiuse concept in an original "Edge City"".

During that year, El Paso Corp., a major tenant with 912,000 sq ft (84,700 m2) in Greenway Plaza, announced that it was vacating the property and moving its personnel to its Downtown Houston headquarters.

A Houston Business Journal article stated that El Paso was expected to sublease the space until 2014, when its lease will expire.

[12] During the afternoon of Monday July 29, 2013, Cousins Properties, a company based in Atlanta, announced that it was buying the entire Greenway Plaza complex and a Downtown Fort Worth office tower.