Stores and snores
Whopping number of hotels and retail centers are on the way in Dallas-Fort Worth
If you’re a fan of shopping or sleeping, check this out: Dallas-Fort Worth ranks as one of the top metro areas in the U.S. for construction of retail and hotel properties.
In the newly released 2019 Construction Outlook from commercial real estate services company JLL, Dallas-Fort Worth appears at No. 3 among U.S. metro areas for the number of hotel rooms set to open this year and at No. 4 for the amount of retail space under construction.
According to JLL, 7,454 new hotel rooms — representing 5 percent of the entire national pipeline of lodging — are supposed to be ready this year in DFW. To put that into perspective, that’s equivalent to adding four Sheraton Dallas hotels. As measured by guest rooms, the Sheraton Dallas Hotel is the region’s biggest hotel (1,840 rooms).
On the retail front, 3.3 million square feet of space is under construction in DFW, according to JLL. That’s equivalent to adding roughly 18 typical Walmart supercenters.
“The increase in construction in the DFW area is nothing new to our market. It has been happening for an extended period and has been driven by the Metroplex’s population growth,” says Greg Biggs, managing director of JLL’s Dallas office. “Since 2000, annual growth has averaged 122,000 people per year. With the forecast being predicted to increase to over 140,000 people per year, construction of every type of real estate is and will continue to be very active.”
The story is much the same in the Houston metro area.
Houston ranks No. 1 in JLL’s 2019 outlook for the amount of retail space under construction among U.S. metro areas and ranks No. 5 for the number of hotel rooms set to open this year.
JLL says 4.1 million square feet of retail space is underway in the Houston area. That’s equivalent to adding nearly 23 typical Walmart supercenters.
In the hotel sector, 4,576 new rooms are set to welcome guests this year in the Houston area, accounting for 3 percent of the entire national pipeline of lodging. That’s equivalent to adding nearly four Hilton Americas-Houston hotels. The Hilton Americas-Houston is the region’s largest hotel based on room count (1,200).
Matthew Parson, senior vice president in JLL’s Houston office, says the region’s retail and hospitality growth aligns with the region’s population and economic growth.
“Houston has been one of the national leaders in population growth for a decade now, with over 100,000 people per year moving into the metropolitan area,” Parson says. “With the population growth and no true barriers restricting the expansion, suburban sprawl continues to expand suburban communities.”
