Your Expert Guide

Lakewood Heights: Where the architecture is as diverse as the residents

Agent Bess Dickson

Photo courtesy of Kuper Sotheby's International Realty

There are so many great places to live in North Texas that it helps to have an expert on your side. The Neighborhood Guide presented by Briggs Freeman Sotheby's International Realty gives you insider access from the agents who live and work there, providing in-the-know info about your possible new community.

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Throughout her years in real estate, Bess Dickson has learned to always expect the unexpected in Lakewood Heights.

"It has a groovy mix of 1920s cottages and midcentury Texas ranches, sprinkled with modern new-builds and a bit of the odd choice," says the Briggs Freeman Sotheby's International Realty agent. "A stroll through Lakewood Heights is a treat for the eyes and soul."

Lakewood Heights is bounded by Abrams Road to the east, Skillman Street to the west, Monticello Avenue to the north, and Richmond Avenue to the south. A little east of Lower Greenville and west of White Rock Lake, this "shoulder neighborhood," as Bess calls it, is a favorite place of hers to bike, run, and make new friends.

"Lakewood Heights is a hive of neighborly experiences," she says, "from the spontaneous July 4th trunk picnic in the Whole Foods parking lot and the holiday parades down Belmont Avenue, to 'First Nights' at Tietze Park and wagonloads of kids being pulled from house to house by their parents on Halloween — the list is endless."

Bess offered up a few of her personal favorites about life in Lakewood Heights. Here's her guide to the area:

Where to eat & drink
Start the day off right with delicious diner food from Goldrush Cafe, or a true New York staple from Benny's Bagels. You can find Bess at Goldrush nearly every Friday at 7:30 am — stop in and say hi, and she'll buy you a cup of coffee.

"Friday night pizza from Scalini's is never boring," Bess says, referencing the restaurant's cafeteria tray-size pies and reasonably priced wine. Prefer to dine at home? Stroll — or bike — over to Whole Foods and head home with whatever catches your eye.

Where to play
In the summer, take a dip in the newly refreshed Tietze Park community pool or ride your bike down to White Rock Lake.

"Strolling down — or rolling down — Swiss Avenue Historic District's tree-lined esplanade is a must," Bess says. "On Sunday mornings, Lakewood Village Farmers Market — hosted by Good Local Markets, at the corner of Mockingbird Lane and Abrams Road — is always full of fresh surprises from local purveyors, like mushrooms (Lion's Mane, anyone?), sourdough bread that's to die for, and local honey, just to name a few."

An annual must-do in May is the Swiss Avenue Historic District Mother's Day Home Tour, a weekend-long tribute to one of Dallas’ most architecturally significant neighborhoods.

For an unforgettable host gift, pop into beloved neighborhood boutique Talulah & Hess.

Where to live
The wide array of home styles that defines Lakewood Heights ensures that if you have a favorite architecture style, you're more than likely to find it here.

"Purple homes, hundreds of gnomes scattered in a yard, white picket fences, and the most modern of modern homes may all be seen while meandering down the streets of Lakewood Heights," Bess says. "Mature, 100-year-old oak trees give shade as you pass a 1920s bungalow, a Spanish Renaissance gem, a just-completed modern, and a Prairie-style home with a wraparound porch. The larger-than-average lots lend themselves to all sorts of backyard setups, including chicken coops!"

One of Bess' favorite homes in the neighborhood, for which she represented the buyer, is 6115 Richmond Avenue, a recently built Craftsman that honors the heritage of the past.

"The Lakewood Heights vibe is one that hums with happy," says Bess. "Your neighbor could be an artist, writer, director, lawyer, surgeon, or retired sea captain — or just a young couple trying to figure out life together. Lifelong friendships are made by rocking on your front porch and simply saying 'howdy' to the passersby."

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Bess Dickson works and runs with her dog, Truman, in Lakewood Heights. For more information on buying and selling a home in the area, click here, email bdickson@briggsfreeman.com, or call 214-736-3921.

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Downtown News

Historic West End Dallas mixed-use complex gets familiar new owner

Courtesy

Market Ross Place

A historic building in Dallas' historic West End has a familiar new owner: Five Smooth Stones, a real estate company that specializes in renovation, just acquired Market Ross Place, a mixed-used combination of three buildings located at 1701 N. Market St.

Five Smooth Stones is led by Owen Hannay, Dallas native and West End enthusiast who first began investing in the neighborhood in 2000, and is now making a return to the historic area to breathe in new life.

“We have had a lot of success in the West End over the past 25 years but, like many other districts, it tends to be cyclical, so we find ourselves with a lot of opportunity to improve the West End — again," Hannay says in a statement.

Market Ross Place consists of three buildings connected by a five-story atrium, comprising four restaurants and office space totaling approximately 142,000 square feet. It was built in 1905 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Hannay also bought three retail buildings across from Market Ross, a parcel that includes the Museum of Illusions; the former Gators restaurant; and a building containing Mas Tacos and Cannon Bakery. He also bought the West End Parking Garage, which includes 35,000 square feet of retail and more than 650 parking spaces on six levels.

These acquisitions closed in March 2026.

Hannay, who also owns Dallas ad agency Slingshot LLC, first began investing in the West End when he acquired the Awalt Building at 208 N. Market St. in 2000. He went on to buy other West End properties such as a three-building portfolio at Elm and North Record streets, giving him one of the largest stakes in the neighborhood, with ownership of nearly one quarter of the 1 million square feet of office space in the area.

Over the years, Five Smooth Stones has purchased and renovated almost 1,000,000 square feet of historic office and retail space in The West End.

One of their most high-profile purchases was the Landmark Center, the six-story building at 1801 N. Lamar St. that was formerly a regional center for the FBI and also served as the first office HQ for CultureMap Dallas when the site launched in 2012. Five Smooth Stones bought it in 2004, renovated it, sold to Argus Realty Investors LP in 2006 — then bought it back again in 2023.

The Landmark Center is one of many properties in the West End that has undergone multiple ownership changes, bouncing from local companies like Five Smooth Stones to institutional companies — often with less than ideal results.

“When we sold our holdings in the West End in 2015, office occupancy in the district was probably over 90 percent," Hannay says. "We intend to get there again by proving that businesses want high-quality, well priced, centrally located historic space that exists in a genuine neighborhood that provides a human scale to live in, work in, and play in."

To that end, Five Smooth Stones has signed several new lease agreements in the Landmark Center, as well as facilitating the comeback of Ellen's Restaurant into its old space at Market Ross.

The new office tenants at Landmark include:

The Law Offices of Dean Omar Branham Shirley, LLP, a leading law firm, leasing almost 16,000 sq ft
HighLevel Inc., a marketing technology company with 15,700 sq ft on the fifth and sixth floors
Benchmark Group Architects, with 7,500 sq ft on the first floor
The Houston Room, an event venue occupying 6,000 sq ft on the fourth floor

… along with several smaller tenants including Corgan Architects Model Studio, Wildcat Investments, Cravens Brothers, JF Depetris, Jr., CPA and Collabridge Solutions, Inc.

The new leases bring The Landmark Center to more than 50 percent occupancy, with additional build- to-suit leasing opportunities available ranging from 2,000 to 30,000 sq ft.

"I believe that the leases we have already signed are indicative of demand,” Hannay says.

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