Month: February 2014
D CEO ~ March 2014: A Big Shake-up in Dallas Commercial Real Estate
Changemakers at three DFW firms are transforming the business—and gaining market share.
Running a commercial real estate firm in Dallas-Fort Worth is not for the faint of heart. Firms here are at the top of their game, and the competition is fierce. But in a market as big and active as North Texas, there are bountiful opportunities, too. “So much of it comes down to hustle,” says Moody Younger of Younger Partners. “If you have good people and work hard and are honest with clients, you’ll get your share.”
Younger and Kathy Permenter, co-founders of Younger Partners, are part of a new leadership class in Dallas real estate, a group that also includes David Pinsel at Colliers International and Steve Everbach at Cushman & Wakefield of Texas Inc. All have been in their current positions for about two years. Younger and Permenter run their own shop; Pinsel and Everbach were both brought in to turn around the DFW offices of their respective companies. All have proven they have the mettle it takes to compete. Here are some of their strategies.
Dallas Business Journal – Billingsley says full sails ahead for Cypress Waters development
By Candace Carlisle, Staff Writer
It’s been more than a decade since Lucy Billingsley initially spotted the large parcel of land near Interstate 635, once owned by Dallas-based TXU Energy, but she still remembers seeing the property and thinking it would make an excellent plot to develop.
The longtime Dallas developer kept in touch with the energy company, hoping to land the 1,000-acre tract, and piece-by-piece, she did.
“It’s so rare to find 1,000 acres of land that’s infill property and near water,” said Billingsley, a partner at Dallas-based Billingsley Co. “In Dallas, you don’t find it.”
Now, Billingsley has jump-started the $3.5 billion master-planned, mixed-use development at the northeast corner of Belt Line Road and Interstate 635 calledCypress Waters, which recently landed the headquarters for Irving-based Cheddar’s Casual Cafe.
“It’s a long-term development that is launching with a lot of momentum,” Billingsley said. “It’s really been thrilling and the speed of development is really exciting.”
Real estate sources say they expectCypress Waters to land some big corporate tenants in the market. The developer has three office buildings underway to attract some of those tenants, as well as a corporate campus park.
Plans for the massive project include a corporate campus of 4.5 million square feet of office space, 10,000 apartments and townhomes, 400,000 square feet of retail space and three one-acre parks.
The project’s proximity to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, as well as the rest of North Texas, is one of the reasons why corporate America is taking notice of Cypress Waters, saidMarijke Lantz, a senior vice president at Billingsley Co.
“A company can pull employees together throughout the Metroplex,” Lantz said.
Cheddar’s ability to expand its North Texas headquarters at Cypress Waters drove the restaurant chain’s decision to set up shop in the master-planned community, said Rick Payne, a Cheddar’s senior vice president.
Cheddar’s is Cypress Waters’ first corporate tenant. The single-story, 31,450-square-foot build-to-suit project at 8951 Cypress Waters Blvd. in Irving is expandable to accommodate future growth.
As the restaurant expands, Cheddar’s plans to hire more corporate employees to support the operations in the chain’s 150 restaurants throughout the United States.
Along with Billingsley’s development plans, the city of Coppell is readying to start lowering a 700-acre lake on the site to 362 acres. The downsized lake will be used in the master-planned community, which will include a five-mile nature trail around the lake, a park setting reminiscent of White Rock Lake in Dallas, as well as lakeside dining options.
Billingsley said the firm’s in the midst of plans to develop alongside the water’s edge.
“We have the opportunity to create a space that’s quite special,” she said.
Dallas Business Journal – What makes the $3.5B Cypress Waters project so alluring? (Video)
It’s been than a decade since Lucy Billingsley first spotted the large parcel of land near Interstate 635, once owned by Dallas-based TXU Energy, but she still remembers seeing the property and thinking it would make an excellent plot to develop.
The longtime Dallas developer kept in touch with the power company, hoping to land the 1,000-acre tract, and piece-by-piece, she did.
“It’s so rare to find 1,000 acres of land that’s infill property and near water,” said Billingsley, a partner at Dallas-based Billingsley Co. “In Dallas, you don’t find it.”
Now, Billingsley has jump started the $3.5 billion master-planned, mixed-use development at the northeast corner of Belt Line Road and Interstate 635 called Cypress Waters, which recently landed the headquarters for Irving-based Cheddars Casual Cafe.
And that’s not all. Real estate sources say the project is contending for a number of large corporate tenants in the North Texas market.
Dallas Business Journal – Dallas ranks as fourth-fastest-growing metro area in U.S.
Dallas is the fourth-fastest growing city in the United States, according to Forbes listof America’s 20 Fastest-Growing Cities2014.
That should come as no surprise to those of us who live in the area and see the steady stream of new residents and businesses and growth in many of the long-standing businesses that call DFW home.
Dallas’ 2013 population growth rate was 1.91 percent, Forbes said. The median pay rate in the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington MSA was $66,700 and the unemployment rate was 5.83 percent, Forbes said.
Austin led the list with a population growth of 2.5 percent, followed by Raleigh, N.C., and Phoenix, Ariz. Houston ranked No. 10 on the list, with a population growth rate of 1.82 percent and San Antonio fell in at No. 20.
Moody Younger: Hog Hunting and Commercial Real Estate ~ DRealEstate Daily, February 17, 2014
One recent Saturday I went on what has become an annual hog hunt with NAI Robert Lynn broker Sam Hocker. Sam introduced me to this sport a few years ago, and I have been hooked on it ever since.
Hog hunting with Sam on the Red River is not for the faint of heart. We hunt the hogs on mules, with dogs. Your only weapon is a Bowie knife, and you only have one knife, so you are not throwing it. This is brutal “hand-to-hog” combat.
The hogs fight back and sometimes win, by injuring the dogs, or you, and getting away. You have to keep your wits about you to avoid serious injury. The goal is to “bring home some bacon”, or a nice boar’s head as a trophy.
Fortunately, we did both on that Saturday.
How does this relate to commercial real estate brokerage?
Dallas Business Journal – Billingsley to develop Cheddars’ new corporate headquarters in Irving
By Candace Carlisle, Staff Writer
Dallas-based development firm Billingsley Co. plans to build the new Irving corporate headquarters for Cheddar’s Casual Cafe, which marks the beginning of a number of construction projects at Cypress Waters.
Cypress Waters is Billingsley’s 1,000-acre master-planned development underway in Dallas and Irving, which has been developing the corporate campus portion of the project.
The developer will start construction on the single-story, 31,450-square-foot build-to-suit project in May at 8951 Cypress WatersBlvd. near Ranch Trail and Interstate 635 in Irving. Cheddar’s will have the ability to expand the building for future growth.
“As Cheddar’s continues to expand nationwide and our support center increases to support 150 restaurants in 28 states, it was clear we needed a headquarters that could accommodate our growing team,” Rick Payne, a Cheddar’s senior vice president, said in a written statement.
“Our new space at Cypress Waters will offer an open, collaborative design flow, a test kitchen for research and development and a training wing,” he said.
Jim Montgomery and William T. Mason of Swearingen Realty Group LLC represented Cheddar’s Restaurants. Moody Younger of Younger Partners represented the developer in the deal.
The new Cheddar’s headquarters will be Cypress Waters‘ first corporate office tenant.
DallasNews: Billingsley Co lands major tenant for its Cypress Waters project
Restaurant chain Cheddar’s Casual Cafe is moving its headquarters to developer Billingsley Co’s new Cypress Waters office park.
The company will relocate to a new 31,450 square foot office project that will start in late May at on Ranch Trail and Interstate 635.
Behind the Scenes: Preston Plaza Sale – Bisnow February 5, 2014
All the stars aligned for both the buyer, Caddo Holdings, and the seller, Granite Properties, to get what they wanted out of the sale of the 261k SF Preston Plaza. Full article.