You’ve toured three buildings this month, and every single listing calls itself Class A. Premier space. Top amenities. Prime location. None of it tells you what you’re actually paying for, and a bad lease doesn’t just cost money. It costs your team’s daily productivity and the first impression your office makes on every client who walks through the door.
Amarillo’s commercial market throws that label around more loosely than it should. This article breaks down what Class A actually means here, how it differs from Class B, and how to spot the real thing when you walk in.
What Does Class A Office Space Mean
How Class A Looks Different in West Texas
- Local ownership instead of an out-of-state REIT
- Walkable access to the downtown business core
- Construction that holds up against West Texas wind without looking dated five years later
- A ten-story building with covered parking and modern systems.
Which Office Building in Amarillo Has the Best Amenities
Covered Parking and Security
Secure, covered parking with 24/7 monitoring removes one of the most common daily frustrations of a downtown lease. Add electronic key card access and on-site security, and you have the baseline that legal, financial, and medical tenants require before they’ll even tour a space.On-Site Fitness and Recovery
A complimentary fitness membership built into the lease is still rare in this market. It signals that ownership is thinking about tenant retention and employee wellness, not just square footage and rent per foot.Boardroom and Meeting Space
A furnished, executive-level boardroom included with your lease means you’re not renting a hotel conference room every time a client needs a real presentation space.Class A vs Class B Office Space in Amarillo
The differences between Class A and Class B rarely show up in the listing price alone. They show up in the day-to-day experience of running your business out of the building.
| Feature | Class A | Class B |
| Location | Prime downtown or business district, high accessibility | Secondary location, less central |
| Finishes & Systems | Modern HVAC, high-end finishes, updated technology | Adequate systems, fair to good finishes |
| Amenities | Fitness access, boardrooms, covered parking often included | Limited or none included |
| Management | On-site, responsive, locally accountable | Often remote or third-party managed |
| Rental Rates | Above the local average | At or below the local average |
What to Check When Touring Class A Space
A polished lobby is not proof of anything. Bring this list with you on your next tour and ask about each one directly.
- Ask who owns and manages the building, and whether maintenance requests go to an on-site team or a call center.
- Check whether parking is covered, secure, and included in the lease, not billed separately.
- Confirm what amenities are actually included in your rent versus offered as a paid upgrade.
- Walk the boardroom or shared meeting space and ask how tenants reserve it.
- Ask about flexibility. Can the suite be reconfigured as your headcount changes?
Why One Maxor Plaza Qualifies as Class A
Every suite also comes with a complimentary membership to the Downtown Athletic Club, the on-site fitness and wellness facility built into the same building. That’s the kind of amenity stack that puts a building in Class A conversation in any West Texas market, not just Amarillo’s.
Key Takeaways
- Class A is a relative, unregulated classification based on rent, finishes, systems, location, and management quality.
- BOMA’s framework is the closest thing the industry has to a shared standard, though no official body certifies individual buildings.
- Amarillo’s Class A bar reflects local ownership, downtown access, and durability, not trophy-tower scale.
- Amenities like covered parking, on-site fitness, and boardroom access are what separate real Class A buildings from buildings borrowing the label.
- One Maxor Plaza includes all of these as part of the lease, not as add-ons.
Tour the One Maxor Plaza
Suppose you’re comparing office space in Amarillo and want to see what a real Class A building includes; schedule a tour of One Maxor Plaza. One Maxor Plaza sits in the historic heart of downtown Amarillo, with the Downtown Athletic Club membership included in every lease. Schedule a tour to walk the sixth-floor community boardroom, check the covered parking garage, and walk through the private tenant park and fire pit before you sign anything.
