Shell’s moving out of Two Shell Plaza this quarter, and Colvill director of leasing Paula Bruns is excited to complete its transformation into 811 Louisiana. By the end of Q1 ’15, renovations will wrap up and she’ll basically have a new building to market. The entrance is moving from Walker to Louisiana, and it’s getting an expanded lobby. Base building infrastructure has been replaced, including a new electrical riser and new dual pane floor to ceiling glass windows and frames. The exterior skin is changing on the lower levels, creating a new pedestrian experience. Paula and Colvill colleague Damon Thames will lead  the leasing effort at 811 Louisiana.

Paula showed off some empty shell space, which has been hard to come by—she tells us it’s been tricky working around ongoing construction and Shell’s not-yet-empty offices. Shell, which has occupied the building since its delivery in 1972, is remaining in two floors, but that still leaves 400k SF available for lease—the largest block of availability Downtown. Page is handling the redesign. Get to know the woman behind the project: Paula loves the French Quarter architecture and tries to never miss a Mardi Gras. She began her leasing career at Hines with David Kelley, Ronnie Martin, Chrissy Wilson, and Clark Davis—if she gets bogged down in leasing details, she borrows David’s slogan: JDDD, or Just Do the Dang Deal.