Nebraska-based investor Goldenrod Companies has become one of the largest property owners in West Dallas’ redeveloping area.
Since its start in 2005, Goldenrod Companies has acquired or developed $4.36 billion worth of properties across the country.
While the price details of its new deal with West Dallas Investments are unknown, most of the 90 new properties are located near Singleton Boulevard and the popular Trinity Groves restaurant park, per The Dallas Morning News.
West Dallas Investments built the restaurant hub while the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge was being constructed in 2013.
Situated on the west end of the bridge, those visiting Trinity Groves not only have a more direct connection to downtown Dallas but also get a specular view of the city’s famous skyline.
The owners of West Dallas Investments — Phil Romano, Stuart Fitts, and Larry “Butch” McGregor — had started investing in the area in 2005, per the DMN.
At the time, no one had been really interested in land along Singleton and West Commerce due to it being rife with problematic properties and plagued by illegal drug activity.
In the subsequent years, West Dallas Investments partnered with other investors to develop the area, building apartment complexes and refurbishing pre-existing structures for alternate purposes.
Goldenrod’s new acquisition spans over 35 acres of real estate and includes both new buildings and vacant lots, according to the DMN.
Several of the sites have been zoned for new construction, although the City of Dallas is notorious for its slow new build permitting process.
High-rise projects had previously been in the works for two of the sites.
West Dallas Investments tried to woo Amazon into one site located at Singleton and Gulden Lane when the online retailer was looking to set up its second headquarters in 2017.
On another site overlooking the Trinity River at Singleton Boulevard and Canada Drive, West Dallas Investments considered building a 400-foot tower office and sought zoning for it in 2020, per the DMN. It would have been the tallest building on the west side of the city.
Many are excited about what the Goldenrod deal will mean for the area, per the DMN.
The sale, which is one of the largest property transactions in years located so near downtown, is expected to significantly change the neighborhood’s development trajectory.
“I think it’s a game changer – bringing in a developer of that caliber with really deep pockets,” Jake Milner, a broker with Davidson Bogel Real Estate, told the DMN.
Kara Rafferty, from the West Dallas Chamber of Commerce, told the DMN that the neighborhood is definitely an up-and-coming hot spot for investors.
“This area is primed for development,” Rafferty explained. “There are a lot of people that would like to buy stuff down there and can’t find anything.”
Goldenrod, which was established by the former pro-football player Zach Wiegert, now has several ongoing ventures in North Texas.
In January, it signed on to develop the Van Zandt, a mixed-use development set to be located at the northwest corner of Foch Street and West 7th Street in Fort Worth’s cultural district.
Additionally, the company has procured office buildings in Irving — a 167,667-square-foot space on Corporate Drive — and Far North Dallas — the 122,000-square-foot Preston Trail Atrium.