Although AllianceTexas is more than 20 years old, it wasn’t until 2001 that I began to fully realize how much a large real estate development could change the landscape of an area. That realization manifested itself one morning, when my typical 20-minute commute from downtown Fort Worth took nearly an hour.
A decade later, AllianceTexas is marked by populated neighborhoods featuring residential, retail, office and industrial space that stretches along much of Interstate 35W. From the anchor airport to our newest multifamily project, Monterra Village, each component carries the distinct look and feel of a continuous community. And, we’re still working hard to solve the infrastructure challenges that come with a development that encompasses a 65-square-mile area.
Working closely with our partner cities that include Fort Worth, Haslet, Westlake and Roanoke, as well as Tarrant and Denton Counties, we have all been able to prosper and grow the tax base together. I believe the cooperation among each government entity in the region should be used as a model for the rest of the country.
Although no one has any intention of creating a separate city at AllianceTexas, this year the Hillwood team enlisted the expertise of a demographer, Research Demographic Solutions, to compare the AllianceTexas area to other fast-growing cities in the region. Just completed, the results are simply staggering.
The report suggests that AllianceTexas and the area surrounding it is one of the fastest-growing corridors in the nation. Adding 111,000 persons from 2000 to 2010, the AllianceTexas corridor had the second-largest absolute population gain and the third-fastest percentage of growth, when compared to North Texas cities with more than 50,000 residents. Taking into account a previous report by the U.S. Census Bureau, which shows that Fort Worth added more than 200,000 new residents during the same time frame, it is likely that nearly half of the city’s population growth is taking place in the AllianceTexas area.
Based on this population growth, if the AllianceTexas area were its own city, it would rank as the seventh-largest community in the Dallas/Fort Worth MSA. Compared to all Texas cities, the AllianceTexas area would rank as the 14th-largest city in the state.
The development is attracting residents at a rapid pace because we are constantly working to meet the demands of our business and residential population. Our retail offerings at Alliance Town Center include some of the nation’s top names in fashion, home goods, sporting goods, restaurants and grocery stores. Entertainment options include the recent opening of Cinemark’s flagship NextGen theater. And a medical community is starting to emerge with the opening of the ER at Alliance, a North Hills Hospital emergency care facility. Later this year, Texas Health Resources will open Harris Methodist Hospital Alliance, while a wide range of health and wellness providers are also establishing offices at AllianceTexas to serve residents of this community.
Another strength is the symbiotic relationship between the business community and the labor force. As home to 300 companies, AllianceTexas offers employees access to a large and diverse base of employers. Similarly, these companies have access to large pool of qualified job candidates, which attracts even more businesses to the development. One of the most impressive bits of information that came from the demographic report was that the AllianceTexas area has one of the most highly educated workforces in the nation. More than 93.4 percent of its residents have earned at least a high school diploma; more than 37 percent have earned a bachelor’s degree or higher.
Our primary goal, when having these types of reports produced, is to give us better insight into understanding the scope of the growth in our area. By knowing who and what make up our community, we’re empowered to effectively communicate with state and national leaders about the urgency of our infrastructure needs.
Serving as president of Hillwood Properties, Mike Berry leads development efforts the 17,000-acre AllianceTexas development north of Fort Worth. Contact him at mike.berry@hillwood.com.