If a new ranking is accurate, San Antonio’s hot market for commercial real estate will continue to sizzle in 2022.

The ranking, from Austin-based CrowdStreet, positions the Alamo City as the country’s No. 14 market for commercial real estate investment this year, marking the city’s debut on the top 20 list. CrowdStreet’s online platform enables private investment in commercial real estate.

San Antonio’s military presence, population growth, and retail growth led to “outsized growth” here last year, CrowdStreet points out. 

“A military presence and above-average population and retail sales growth have helped to spur outsized growth for the local economy in 2021,” CrowdStreet says, also noting a LaborIQ report that its proximity to Austin could eventually lead to a combined market that could have a significant impact on labor, the economy, and real estate. “San Antonio and Austin may be moving closer to merging into a single labor market, similar to Dallas-Fort Worth.”

CrowdStreet ranked the top 20 commercial real estate markets based on nearly 30 factors, including population growth, job growth, unemployment rate, economic diversification, education levels, climate, property prices, and quality of life. Click to read more at www.sanantonio.culturemap.com.

Inspire Development broke ground Jan. 27 on Pearson Ranch, a 156-acre mixed-use project that aims to bring office space, retail, hotels, housing and parks to an area developers called Williamson County’s “burgeoning technology corridor.”

Located at the northeast corner of SH 45 N and West Parmer Lane, the development is 2 miles from Apple’s $1 billion new campus. Pearson Ranch will feature 2.6 million square feet of Class A office space; 200,000 square feet of retail, restaurant and community spaces; two hotels, thousands of multifamily housing units; and 30 acres of parkland, according to a Jan. 31 release from Inspire Development.

In the release, Pearson Ranch developers said the community is designed to attract local restaurants and retailers and provide access to parks, public spaces and hike-and-bike trails. The site is also located east of Capital Metro’s Lakeline Station, which provides access to the MetroRail Red Line as well as bus service. Click to read more at www.communityimpact.com.

AUSTIN, Texas, Jan. 20, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Legacy MCS, experts in Texas-based multi-family developments, have just been awarded the contract for The Station at St. Elmo. The South Austin mixed-use, condominium development will be one of the city’s most visible Live-Work residences. Located in the fashionable St. Elmo district, the project is already fully sold-out.

Construction will begin shortly and is expected to be finished in July, 2023. Legacy MCS is building the property for Legacy Communities. The architects are Mark Odom and Kelly Grossman, Interior Design and vision by Brewer Design Studios.

Legacy MCS is a group of dedicated professionals with decades of expertise in the Texas market and has most recently been recognized as a leader in Single Family Rental construction. Founded in 2015 by partners, Cass Brewer and Andrew Brewer, Legacy MCS is committed to offering a full range of world class construction management oversite with a wide range of proven experience and a return for their clients. Along with leading the way in Texas with the highest level of Single-Family Rental expertise in the market, their projects include apartments, condos, townhomes, student living, affordable housing, senior living, mixed-use and hospitality. Click to read more at www.prnewswire.com.

As the city of Austin’s plan for caps and stitches crossing I-35 near downtown progresses, the corridor program office is starting to think more specifically about how to fund such an expansive project.

The project would work simultaneously with the Texas Department of Transportation’s $4.9 billion overhaul of I-35 in Central Austin to create widened bridges, referred to as stitches, and decks, referred to as caps, over the highway from East Cesar Chavez Street to Airport Boulevard.

Mike Trimble, director of the corridor program office, said preliminary estimates suggest the cost to build the caps will be between $700 million-$800 million, including $450 million-$500 million for the cap structure and $250 million-$300 million for amenities and facilities on the surface.

“Really preliminary right now, and we really need to work with the community over this next year to start to develop what those desired amenities and improvements should be on the caps, and that will give us a much better understanding of what those cost estimates will be,” Trimble said. Click to read more at www.communityimpact.com.

Why would Samsung choose Taylor, Texas as its location? There are two important factors to consider: Not only will the business receive a significant property tax break, but the deal is sure to create an abundance of lucrative jobs in Travis and Williamson County. Given the massive shortage of computer chips recently, it is good news that a new plant is being built. Hopefully, the $17 billion facility will help alleviate some of the community’s concerns.

The Details of the Property Tax Decision & Performance-Based Agreements in Williamson County

Recently, commissioners in Williamson County held a meeting with Samsung to reach an agreement surrounding tax breaks and incentives. Ad valorem taxes will be decided using a performance-based agreement in accordance with a newly approved Chapter 381 regulation. Samsung will pay 90 percent of ad valorem taxes during the initial decade of the agreement. Then, the county will grant 85 percent of ad valorem taxes paid by Samsung the following decade.

So, what exactly are the performance incentives that Samsung has to meet? The tax breaks are contingent upon Samsung constructing at least six million square feet in facilities by the end of January 2026. This must be followed by the creation of 1,800 full-time jobs. In exchange, Williamson County agreed to improve targeted roads around the facility to make life easier for the technology giant.

Other Tax Breaks Coming from Taylor ISD

Although Samsung will receive a large number of tax breaks from Williamson County, there is also an incentive deal with Taylor ISD. While the specifics of the agreement are still pending it appears that Samsung will receive more than $300 million in tax breaks during the next ten years. In exchange for the massive tax breaks, the community is getting a lot of lucrative jobs that are sorely needed. Click to read more at www.keatax.com.