TEXAS SNAPSHOT, MAY 2007

Amarillo

The city of Amarillo, Texas, and the surrounding area have experienced steady growth during the past 10 to 12 years, and, according to Bob Garrett, SIOR broker/owner of Coldwell Banker Commercial in Amarillo, all indications are that this trend will extend for many more years. “Almost every sector of our economy is growing,” Garrett says. “Our geographic location in Texas and the nation has had a big impact on our continued growth.”

Several property types will continue to see growth in Amarillo in the next year, including the medical area with the expansion of the Texas Tech Medical School, Texas Tech Pharmacy School and the three major hospitals in the Amarillo medical center.

A number of medical office and healthcare facilities are underway throughout the city, with a heavy concentration around Research Street and Wallace Boulevard. Blue Cross is under construction on a new call center located on the southwest corner of Glidden and Wallace boulevards; Trophy Health Care is building a new facility at the southwest corner of Research Street and Wallace Boulevard; Coffee Memorial Blood Center has just moved into a new 30,000-square-foot facility at the northwest corner of Research Street and Wallace Boulevard; Baptist Saint Anthony’s Hospital is nearing completion of a new wing of the hospital at the corner of Coulter Street and Wallace Boulevard; and Texas Tech Medical School and School of Pharmacy both will be expanding their campuses in the medical center on Coulter Street.

The retail market in Amarillo also is bustling with activity. Lowe’s Home Improvement Warehouse, for example, is opening a new 117,000-square-foot facility next to the Wal-Mart SuperCenter at the intersection of Business Interstate 40 and Tascosa Road in Northwest Amarillo next December. Another big box retailer, The Home Depot, has opened a new 103,000-square-foot facility (formerly K-Mart), and Hastings opened a new 26,000-square-foot foot facility in the Wolflin Village area at I-40 and Georgia.

The Forum At Soncy, which is located at 34th and Soncy streets in Southwest Amarillo, recently celebrated its grand opening with a list of new retailers for the city, such as Cost Plus World Market, Coldwater Creek, Jos. A. Bank Clothiers, Guitar Center, Baker Brothers, Kirkland’s Home, Lane Bryant and Pei Wei Asian Diner.

At I-40 and Western Street, The Western Plaza Mall is being redeveloped by Dallas-based The Seitz Group. The new shopping center will be named Western Crossing and will include Burlington Coat Factory, Mardel, Michaels, Petco, Cheddars and Olive Garden. Opening is projected for March 2008.

In the office sector, Happy State Bank has acquired a city block in the central business district (CBD) for the development of their new corporate office and banking facility between 10th and 11th streets and Buchanan and Pierce streets. The building is expected to be approximately 50,000 square feet and will open in the fall of 2008. First United Bank also recently completed the construction of their new banking center at 34th and Soncy streets.

Amarillo’s industrial market is seeing new development as well. For example, Ben E. Keith has just moved into a new more than 300,000-square-foot distribution center in the northeast quadrant of Loop 335. Amarillo Cotton Warehouse Ltd. has completed a 1.5 million-square-foot facility with plans to expand the warehouses by an additional 1.5 million square feet in the near future. The facility is located in Northeast Amarillo at U.S. Highway 66/60 and Materson Road.

The majority of the development in Amarillo has always been to the southwest part of Amarillo, according to Garrett, and it looks as if that trend will carry on into 2007 and 2008. “During the last several years, we also have seen significant residential and commercial growth in Northwest Amarillo,” Garrett says. “While there have been numerous retailers expanding into the new area, this is a very underserved area from a retail standpoint and should continue to see good growth.” There also has been a significant amount of development in Southeast Amarillo with the new Tradewinds subdivision and business center.

The future of Amarillo looks bright as the job market continues to expand, fueling the need for more development. “The strength of the commercial real estate market is reflected in Amarillo’s job growth,” Garrett says. “According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the 2005 to 2006 job growth is 3.2 percent, which is equal to the growth rate of Austin and greater than the growth rate of Dallas/Fort Worth, Lubbock, El Paso and the state of Texas.”

— Bob Garrett, SIOR is broker/owner of Coldwell Banker Commercial in Amarillo, Texas.


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