Bisnow's New Construction and Development Summit: Part II

Today's developers take a more conservative approach to new construction than before the commercial real estate industry fell off the cliff in '07, we learned Wednesday at Bisnow's second annual DFW New Construction and Development Summit at the Marriott City Center. In '07, DFW had around 25M SF of industrial projects in the works or recently delivered, says Duke Realty SVP Jeff Thornton (with Prime Rail Interest's Mike Rader and Panattoni Construction's Brian Straley). Right now, the number sits at 7M SF. And as more tenants come to Dallas and aren't able to find the space they need (that must be why the freeway is always so jammed... people are using their cars as rolling offices), there will be an uptick in build-to-suit on the industrial side, he says.

Here's event moderator Kane Russell Coleman & Logan president Raymond Kane and panelist Blue Star Land GM Joe Hickman. Joe's finishing a 500-acre project in Allen and continuing north. He's bullish on Collin County and Frisco, in particular. His firm's building a new practice facility and HQ office there now. He credits the North Dallas Tollway with driving development in Prosper and Frisco. Next project: the 700-acre, master-planned Gates of Prosper. (That sounds almost Biblical.) Raymond says KRCL focuses predominantly on real estate transactions and has worked with most of people on this panel.

Known for its massive build-to-suit projects, KDC CEO Steve Van Amburgh teased that the firm signed another build-to-suit deal, which he hopes to announce soon. (Developers are so coy sometimes.) Other news: KDC opened offices in Houston and Atlanta (working on another couple of million SF in Perimeter Center in Atlanta on a State Farm deal there, too). From a velocity standpoint, the pipeline is longer, deeper, and better than any in the past 25 years, he says. Dallas is hottest spot in the US for in-migration. He also says that technology is making corporate America communicate differently internally, as well as changing how their offices are operated, with more densely packed spaces.

Trammell Crow Co president of central operations Adam Saphier says by year's end, TCC will have 4.5M SF of commercial development in Dallas alone. Also active in San Antonio, Houston, and Austin, Adam says he sees more cooperation for projects in Texas than from municipalities and government entities in California (there, he not only see less cooperation and assistance, but sometimes outright resistance). His advice to people entering the industry: Don't underestimate the power of a work ethic. There are forces outside of our control that can help or hurt every project; one thing you can control is how hard your work, he says. (That generally doesn't involve any Facebook time, so immediately that seems too difficult.)

Billingsley SVP investments and build-to-suits Marijke Lantz (far right, with Pegasus Ablon asset management VP Mark Roppolo and Younger Partners partner Moody Younger) says Billingsley's 1,000-acre Cypress Waters project at LBJ and Belt Line opened 675 multifamily units (that were pre-leased) and has three buildings under construction, one with a HQ company, one spec, and activity is so strong that the firm is following up with another spec building. Her advice to people entering real estate world: Learn new things and learn all sides of the business to help your clients. Having a good reputation for being ethical and moral will benefit you throughout your career.

Event sponsor BBL Construction Services' Bridgett Bell and Lyndsey Cherry tell us the GC has multifamily projects statewide and into Oklahoma from Corpus Christi to OKC, Midland to Tyler, and Mesquite to Temple.

Event sponsor Centerpoint Builders' Tony Rader, Brittany Allcorn, Ashley Carter, and Tim Guedry. The firm is working on two student housing projects at the University of Houston and the University of Texas at San Antonio. With its affiliation with AUI, the combination provides expertise in multifamily and commercial construction.

We found event sponsor Town of Addison's Orlando Campos, Blake Clemens, and Ben Magill. Orlando tells us Addison is running out of office space and wants new buildings. He says there are several sites along the North Dallas Tollway that are prime for new office development. There are also redevelopment opportunities available, too.

Here's event sponsor DPR Construction's Matt Guiffre and Sarah Gentry. They tell us that the firm is growing the Dallas market and opening a large office off McKinney Avenue. (The Redwood City, Calif-based company already has offices in Dallas, Austin, and Houston.) The firm specializes in high-end and technical projects from healthcare to corporate offices and hospitality.

Event sponsor Chicago Title's Taylor Deaton and Cawley Partners' Addie Ludwig. Chicago Title is a full-service national title company boasting a staff filled with experienced personnel, service capabilities, and autonomy to service clients regardless of location--that allows for a streamlined closing process for single-site transactions and multi-asset/multi-site closings.