December 2012..............Bush Tollway opens up.
3/Dec/2012....................DART opens up.
It has been 2.5 years since the tollway arrived and 1.5 years since DART opened.
Other than the shopping center anchored by Target (the planning of which was several years earlier), there has been no privately funded development attributed to the two major events above. Nothing. There have been capital improvements funded by the city, but no private funding. Well.........maybe that strip center just outside the gates of Waterview might have used the tollway as part of their feasibility study........but that's pretty light weight underwriting......very light weight. It's a long way from the tollway and a long time before Liberty Grove improvements.
To make the timelines even worse, most aggressive developers have plans underway months in advance of major events that improve marketability of real estate. Developers are always thinking a year in front of themselves. They have to to remain competitive. There seems to be zero interest in Rowlett even tho we have a lake in the middle of town. Everything is present for a really great town.
Given the developers normal "gear up" time for planning in good markets, its now been 3.5 and 2.5 years respectively since developers should have been thinking about Rowlett. We are now working on an apartment project in downtown Rowlett. Clearly, the DART rail is instrumental in the developer's underwriting criterion. But, my goodness, look at how much we had to pay for this development. Maybe as much as $11 million.
Does anybody know anything else of note that might be attributable to the tollway and DART? Please advise, if you do.
Rockwall, Murphy, Wylie, and Sachse all have very active commercial and residential development activity underway......and none have the tollway or DART. In fact, Rockwall brags about the tollway and it doesn't even come to their town........it goes completely thru Rowlett.
Do you think there might be something wrong with this picture? Wonder what it is?
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