DBJ hosted the Denton County Growth Summit on Aug. 26 at UNT’s DATCU Stadium, where a sold-out crowd heard from a pair of expert panels.
One focused on the companies involved in billions of dollars in new real estate projects and the other featured leaders from three of the county’s largest employers and economic bellwethers.
The panelists for the first panel were Aimee Bissett, practice lead for planning and entitlements, McAdams; Teague Griffin, partner, Old Prosper Partners; Andrew Pieper, senior vice president, Hillwood Communities; Tommy Tucker, VP of business development for Central and North Texas, Johnson Development; and Kirk Wilson, CEO, T. Wilson. For the second panel, they were Brian Danhof, plant manager, Peterbilt; Steven Edgar, CEO, Medical City Denton; and Harrison Keller, president, University of North Texas.
The conversations covered the projects that are poised to transform more than 12,000 acres of former ranch land in the county with more than $20 billion in investment, as well as the opportunities and challenges inherent in developing in a region with a unique culture and proud history. Panelists also touched on the unique allure and appeal of Denton and the county more widely, as well as how its unique geography and infrastructure access are paving the way for more economic growth. Here were some of the key quotes.
On future of Denton
“Denton was [for] a long time a little town north of Dallas or Fort Worth. It is no longer that. It’s its own city. It is no longer a suburb — it is a huge mecca. With the two colleges, the growth through employment is huge in Denton. That’s kind of why we’re here.” — Teague Griffin, partner, Old Prosper Partners
“The trajectories are very bullish in terms of Denton, Denton County, and just the current growth patterns. We are undersupplied compared to some of the other markets in North Dallas, so we think long term this is the place to be. Ultimately, 10, 20, 30 years from now, we’re going to be looking at Denton as an infill city. … With the right planning infrastructure, et cetera, this is going to be really a different landscape, and hopefully for the better.” — Andrew Pieper, senior vice president, Hillwood Communities
“From a data point, this region is one of the healthiest real estate submarkets in the Metroplex. Yes, things [in the housing market] are soft, but if you look at the vacant developed lot supply, if you look at the homes that are being sold, this is we’re in a very healthy place here. … We have these heat maps, and everywhere across Metroplex was red, which for this map was bad. But there’s one green dot, and it’s right here [in Denton], and we’re bullish about that. And that green dot has not gone away in the last year and a half, and we don’t think it’s going away anytime soon because this area… let the growth come to it. For that reason, we think that while the market is soft, the future is bright.” — Tommy Tucker, VP of business development for Central and North Texas, Johnson Development
On balancing development with history
“I think that an important consideration, especially in Denton County, is what do the residents want? What do the leaders of the community want? … Understanding the natural heritage of the land, understanding the legacy that the families are going to leave behind, and what they would like to see for the future of the community is something, especially in Denton, that’s extremely important. … Those are important considerations for our leaders of our community as well as the residents who live here and care about the vision of the future.” — Aimee Bissett, practice lead for planning and entitlements, McAdams
“It starts for us as a developer with education. We need to learn about the land, we need to learn about the history of the land. … Every piece of that story will filter into everything we [put] forward in a public way. It’s very much integrated into the entire development from marketing to public relations to outreach. It becomes the core of the story, and every property is different. And at [Cole Ranch], it almost makes our job easy because it’s got such a great story that’s already been told — we’re just adding to it.” — Tommy Tucker