COVER STORY, JANUARY 2006

MIXED USES MEET MIXED NEEDS
Catering to unique demographics, Texas' newest mixed-use projects meet the needs of diverse populations.
Bobbin Wages

Mixed-use developments continue to be popular in the Texas market. With diverse uses packed into one project, people can live, work, shop and eat — and never get into their cars. Here are five mixed-use projects that surely will satisfy Texas' varied needs.

Village on the Green
Dallas, Texas

Cypress Equities is developing Village on the Green, a residential, retail and restaurant project located in north Dallas. The 6.5-acre property is scheduled to open next fall.

Because of the 6.5-acre property's high list price, the development site stood vacant for years. “With a $40-per-foot price range, we couldn't do a traditional center with 25 percent retail coverage,” says Chris Maguire, president and CEO of Cypress Equities. “We knew we had to get higher densities.”

Village on the Green retailers won't have to look far for prospective shoppers. The Galleria, one of the nation's most successful malls, is located directly across the street. The project's retail and restaurant mix will provide consumers with a unique shopping and dining experience. “We're talking to owners of restaurants and shops that do not yet have a presence in Dallas/Fort Worth—but want one,” Maguire says. “These are unique concepts that you will not see in other retail centers. Our hope is to create a real destination in a center that draws people from a wider range, since they won't be able to find what we offer down the street.”

With a diverse combination of retailers and restaurants, Village on the Green will appeal to a mixed demographic. “There is 4.5 million square feet of office space in the immediate vicinity, so we're targeting that daytime office population,” Maguire says. “And more than 50 percent of The Galleria's sales comes from out-of-the-area visitors, so we'll be hitting that demographic as well.”

With its upscale offerings, Village on the Green hopes to prompt changes in north Dallas.   “Another 20-story-plus condominium project has been announced next door to us, and there's a huge opportunity from The Galleria over to Valley View to redevelop that corridor,” Maguire says. “What we're doing will kick off some redevelopment in the whole area.”

Riverwalk Marble Falls
Marble Falls, Texas

Riverway Commercial Development is developing Riverwalk Marble Falls, a four-phase, $90 million project that will be located on Highway 281 in Marble Falls. Construction on the project is slated to begin in first quarter 2006 with completion scheduled for fourth quarter 2007.

Riverwalk Marble Falls concept

Riverwalk also will fill Marble Falls' need for a premier place to shop. “Marble Falls has been lacking in terms of retail,” Ausmus says. “People come from as far as 60 miles away to shop in Marble Falls, and people who don't shop there have to go to San Antonio or Austin.”  

Other project features will include an outdoor amphitheater; an upscale, 200-room hotel with four penthouses; a 64-room boutique hotel with two penthouses; and 40 condominiums spread throughout the development's restaurants and shops overlooking the water.

Running along the shoreline of Lake Marble Falls, the project will appeal to both tourists and locals. “People always seek things to do on the weekends, and this will be a place for them to spend some time on the water and enjoy the Hill Country,” Ausmus says. “Marble Falls has been listed in several magazines as being one of the best places to live and one of the top 10 places to retire.”

Visitors will be able to anchor their boats at the project's boat docks and then spend the day shopping or dining. Close-up parking, parking garages, valet services and a shuttle will be available as well.

Designed by Austin-based Living Architecture (formerly from Phoenix), Riverwalk will look and feel like a European village. Design features will include cluster shops, arches that connect from building to building, lighted pathways and lush landscaping. “It will take on a unique look that will be the focal point of Hill Country shopping and entertainment,” Ausmus says.

Marble Falls has been listed in the top 10 percent of growth in the nation, and Riverwalk's mixed uses will meet a variety of this area's rising needs. “Riverwalk will be a great complement to the thriving business that already exists in the Marble Falls area,” Ausmus says.

Mueller
Austin, Texas

In a partnership with the city of Austin, ProLogis, the company that recently acquired Catellus Development Corporation, is developing the 711-acre Mueller project at the intersection of Interstate 35 and 51st Street in east Austin. Designed by San Francisco-based ROMA Design Group, the master-planned project is a redevelopment of the former Robert Mueller Municipal Airport.

Mueller will include approximately 4,600 housing units, half of which will be multifamily. The first phase of multifamily and single-family development will be available in mid-2007.

ProLogis aims to create a community that is both ethnically and economically diverse. “Houses of different sizes and product types will be sprinkled throughout the project,” says David Ross, director of development at Mueller. “There might be a 3,000-square-foot home next to a 1,200-square-foot bungalow with a completely different elevation and façade.”

Mueller also will contain 4 million square feet of office, medical and institutional uses, which will include Austin Film Studios, a neighborhood school and a recreation center. ProLogis has sold 32 acres of land to SETON Healthcare Network for the construction of the 450,000-square-foot Dell Children's Medical Center of Central Texas, which currently is under construction and will open in June 2007. A 130,000-square-foot medical office building also is underway on the SETON campus, along with a 30,000-square-foot Ronald McDonald House.

In addition, a town center with a grocery store and sidewalk cafés will be located in the center of Mueller. The project also will feature up to 366,000 square feet of regional retail for which The Weitzman Group will serve as exclusive leasing broker. O'Brien Architects is designing this portion of Mueller. “Generally, we're targeting regional, power center-type retailers,” Ross says.

Almost 20 percent, or 140 acres, of Mueller will be set aside for ball fields, running trails, 13 miles of bike trails and a 30-acre park called Lake Park. This public space will echo ProLogis' dedication to sustainability. The development's green building techniques will include a reclaimed water line and a chilled water plant. “The reclaimed water, which is basically recycled water, will irrigate the park space, public space and openways,” Ross says, “and the children's medical center will be the first user of the chilled water.”

Public art will front the edge of Interstate 35 to serve as a signature of the project. “We want a unique art element to serve as a gateway into Mueller,” Ross says.

In accordance with the city's goal to establish a positive revenue stream, Mueller is estimated to increase Austin's tax base to $1 billion during the next 20 years and is expected to generate approximately $30 million in sales tax revenues and $104 million in property tax revenues. Furthermore, the project will create 10,500 full-time jobs and 11,000 construction jobs during the next 10 years.

“We feel lucky to have this opportunity to create a unique environment in an urban, infill setting,” Ross says. “It's been a collaborative effort between ProLogis, the city and the surrounding neighborhoods to create something special in the heart of Austin.”

Southpark Meadows
Austin, Texas

Endeavor Real Estate Group is developing Southpark Meadows, a 425-acre, mixed-use, master-planned project located on Interstate 35, just 10 miles south of downtown Austin. Dallas-based Hodges & Associates is serving as project architect, and Austin-based Cunningham/Allen Inc. is civil engineer. The $300 million development will comprise 1.6 million square feet of retail space, approximately 650 multifamily units, 200 townhomes and up to 400 single-family homes. Phase I, anchored by Wal-Mart and PetsMart, opened in May 2005. The second phase of retail, which will feature tenants such as Rooms To Go, Circuit City, Ross Dress For Less, Hobby Lobby, JC Penney, Ashley Furniture, Bassett Furniture and Cinemark Theatres, will begin opening this May.

Southpark Meadows is largely driven by its retail component, since south Austin's need for retail has long been underserved. “We are responding to a demand that has been in place for a long time,” says Chris Ellis, a principal with Endeavor Real Estate Group. “This is only the second large-scale retail development in south Austin, and approximately 45 percent of the city's total population of 1.4 million lives south of downtown.”

Both multifamily and housing developers have found Southpark Meadows' location attractive, and Endeavor will sell the multifamily and single-family portions of the project to Fairfield Residential and Lennar Homes, respectively. The multifamily units will be either garden- or suburban-style. “The combination of these uses and the project's retail space will increase its appeal to prospective residents,” Ellis says. Endeavor also has set aside 25 acres of land for medical office and office condominiums.

With Austin-based Coleman & Associates working as landscape architect, Southpark Meadows will be tied together with more than 4.5 miles of hiking and biking trails, along with a 5-acre central park called The Grove. The Grove will include 40,000 square feet of restaurant and courtyard space. “This will be a central gathering place for the entire project and will be unique to the power center environment that we are building,” Ellis says.

Upon completion, Southpark Meadows will be the largest shopping center in Austin. “We look forward to creating a master-planned community along with the retail project,” Ellis says. “Instead of building four separate projects, the entire mixed-use development will be well thought-out.”

The Spectrum at Clear Creek
Pearland, Texas

In Pearland, The Pearland Economic Development Corporation (PEDC) is developing The Spectrum at Clear Creek, a public/private business/technology park situated on 1,000 acres at the intersection of Beltway 8 and State Highway 288. The Spectrum's mixed uses will include high-end office, research and development, and distribution space, along with a retail lifestyle center.

The Spectrum's first phase includes the extension of Kirby Drive, a four-lane road that runs from Shadow Creek Ranch, a 3,000-acre subdivision south of the development site, to Beltway 8. “The new infrastructure is positioned at the center of The Spectrum,” says Fred Welch, executive director of PEDC. “It will be our spine.” Turner Collie & Braden is the design engineer for the public infrastructure of Kirby Drive, which Hassell Construction is now installing.

Once the road extension is completed in March, Memphis, Tennessee-based Poag & McEwen Lifestyle Centers will construct The Promenade Shops at Shadow Creek, a $150 million lifestyle center that will span at least 700,000 square feet. Construction is scheduled to begin in May with a fall 2007 opening. A 153,000-square-foot Bass Pro Shops store is planned to anchor the property, which will sit on 127 acres that Poag & McEwen has acquired.

LNR Properties, PEDC's other development partner, purchased 147 acres of land for the $500 million development of almost 1.6 million square feet of office and research space, which will take 7 to 10 years to complete. The project's closeness to other research-oriented properties makes its location ideal. “The Spectrum is in close proximity to Texas Medical Center and Johnson Space Center, so there is a tremendous amount of research being conducted in the area,” Welch says. “In the long term, we hope to capture some of that innovation in the Houston area, as opposed to letting it go to the East or West Coast.”

At build-out, The Spectrum's business park will create an estimated 3,500 new jobs, with the lifestyle center generating approximately 1,500 of those jobs.

In addition to new jobs, the business park also will bring a tenant mix with fresh ideas and minds to Pearland. “The Spectrum is an exciting development for the Houston-area market,” Welch says. “It's a great environment for the businesses of the future to incubate and grow.”

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