Media Relations Contact:
Morgan Lyons

December 15, 2000

DART making economic impact around Cityplace Station

Throughout the DART Service Area, investors and developers are following DART Rail lines for the fastest track to successful developments. DART's new Cityplace Station is no exception.

Investors prepare to capitalize on the proven economic success the light rail brings to its neighbors. Cityplace Company developers are planning 230 adjoining apartments, a 300-room hotel and a 43-story office tower in the area, and Cityplace Company's Neal Sleeper says "DART is a very key factor in all that development. We think DART is going to be a tremendous catalyst."

Across the expressway from Cityplace, Urban Partners and Phoenix Property Co. are developing the $50-million West Village, 7.5 acres with six buildings to house townhouse lofts, retail, and a theater. The project will benefit from an entrance to DART's Cityplace Station on the west side of the expressway, which will also be served by the McKinney Avenue Trolley. Nearby, McCaslin Development is building the $23-million Quarters at Cityplace, a 244-unit luxury apartment complex. Developers say they'll market the fact that the DART station is within walking distance of their project.

A study by Dr. Bernard Weinstein of the University of North Texas' Center for Economic Development and Research shows the values of properties adjoining DART light rail stations grew 25 percent more than similar properties not served by the rail system. Proximity to DART light rail stations appears to be a plus for most classes of real estate, especially Class A and C office buildings and strip retail. Average occupancies for Class A buildings near rail increased from 80 percent in 1994 to 88.5 percent in 1998, while rents increased from an average $15.60/sf to $23. Strip retailers near the stations registered a 49.5 percent gain in occupancy and a 64.8 percent improvement in rental rates.

Click here to view an Adobe PDF version of the study, The Initial Economic Impacts of the DART LRT System. (The file can be viewed and printed using Adobe's free Acrobat Reader. The free Acrobat Reader may be obtained at the following Internet location: http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html.)

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