Dallas Business Journal – Billingsley says full sails ahead for Cypress Waters development

By Candace Carlisle, Staff Writer

It’s been more than a decade since Lucy Billingsley initially spotted the large parcel of land near Interstate 635, once owned by Dallas-based TXU Energy, but she still remembers seeing the property and thinking it would make an excellent plot to develop.

The longtime Dallas developer kept in touch with the energy company, hoping to land the 1,000-acre tract, and piece-by-piece, she did.

“It’s so rare to find 1,000 acres of land that’s infill property and near water,” said Billingsley, a partner at Dallas-based Billingsley Co. “In Dallas, you don’t find it.”

Now, Billingsley has jump-started the $3.5 billion master-planned, mixed-use development at the northeast corner of Belt Line Road and Interstate 635 calledCypress Waters, which recently landed the headquarters for Irving-based Cheddar’s Casual Cafe.

“It’s a long-term development that is launching with a lot of momentum,” Billingsley said. “It’s really been thrilling and the speed of development is really exciting.”

Real estate sources say they expectCypress Waters to land some big corporate tenants in the market. The developer has three office buildings underway to attract some of those tenants, as well as a corporate campus park.

Plans for the massive project include a corporate campus of 4.5 million square feet of office space, 10,000 apartments and townhomes, 400,000 square feet of retail space and three one-acre parks.

The project’s proximity to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, as well as the rest of North Texas, is one of the reasons why corporate America is taking notice of Cypress Waters, saidMarijke Lantz, a senior vice president at Billingsley Co.

“A company can pull employees together throughout the Metroplex,” Lantz said.

Cheddar’s ability to expand its North Texas headquarters at Cypress Waters drove the restaurant chain’s decision to set up shop in the master-planned community, said Rick Payne, a Cheddar’s senior vice president.

Cheddar’s is Cypress Waters’ first corporate tenant. The single-story, 31,450-square-foot build-to-suit project at 8951 Cypress Waters Blvd. in Irving is expandable to accommodate future growth.

As the restaurant expands, Cheddar’s plans to hire more corporate employees to support the operations in the chain’s 150 restaurants throughout the United States.

Along with Billingsley’s development plans, the city of Coppell is readying to start lowering a 700-acre lake on the site to 362 acres. The downsized lake will be used in the master-planned community, which will include a five-mile nature trail around the lake, a park setting reminiscent of White Rock Lake in Dallas, as well as lakeside dining options.

Billingsley said the firm’s in the midst of plans to develop alongside the water’s edge.

“We have the opportunity to create a space that’s quite special,” she said.

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Dallas Business Journal – What makes the $3.5B Cypress Waters project so alluring? (Video)

It’s been than a decade since Lucy Billingsley first spotted the large parcel of land near Interstate 635, once owned by Dallas-based TXU Energy, but she still remembers seeing the property and thinking it would make an excellent plot to develop.

The longtime Dallas developer kept in touch with the power company, hoping to land the 1,000-acre tract, and piece-by-piece, she did.

“It’s so rare to find 1,000 acres of land that’s infill property and near water,” said Billingsley, a partner at Dallas-based Billingsley Co. “In Dallas, you don’t find it.”

Now, Billingsley has jump started the $3.5 billion master-planned, mixed-use development at the northeast corner of Belt Line Road and Interstate 635 called Cypress Waters, which recently landed the headquarters for Irving-based Cheddars Casual Cafe.

And that’s not all. Real estate sources say the project is contending for a number of large corporate tenants in the North Texas market.

Complete article.

Dallas Business Journal – Billingsley to develop Cheddars’ new corporate headquarters in Irving

By Candace Carlisle, Staff Writer

Dallas-based development firm Billingsley Co. plans to build the new Irving corporate headquarters for Cheddar’s Casual Cafe, which marks the beginning of a number of construction projects at Cypress Waters.
Cypress Waters is Billingsley’s 1,000-acre master-planned development underway in Dallas and Irving, which has been developing the corporate campus portion of the project.

The developer will start construction on the single-story, 31,450-square-foot build-to-suit project in May at 8951 Cypress WatersBlvd. near Ranch Trail and Interstate 635 in Irving. Cheddar’s will have the ability to expand the building for future growth.

“As Cheddar’s continues to expand nationwide and our support center increases to support 150 restaurants in 28 states, it was clear we needed a headquarters that could accommodate our growing team,” Rick Payne, a Cheddar’s senior vice president, said in a written statement.

“Our new space at Cypress Waters will offer an open, collaborative design flow, a test kitchen for research and development and a training wing,” he said.

Jim Montgomery and William T. Mason of Swearingen Realty Group LLC represented Cheddar’s Restaurants. Moody Younger of Younger Partners represented the developer in the deal.

The new Cheddar’s headquarters will be Cypress Waters‘ first corporate office tenant.

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DallasNews: Billingsley Co lands major tenant for its Cypress Waters project

Restaurant chain Cheddar’s Casual Cafe is moving its headquarters to developer Billingsley Co’s new Cypress Waters office park.

The company will relocate to a new 31,450 square foot office project that will start in late May at on Ranch Trail and Interstate 635.

Complete article.

Bisnow’s New Construction and Development Summit

Billingsley SVP investments and build-to-suits Marijke Lantz (far right, with Pegasus Ablon asset management VP Mark Roppolo and Younger Partners partner Moody Younger) says Billingsley’s 1,000-acre Cypress Waters project at LBJ and Belt Line opened 675 multifamily units (that were pre-leased) and has three buildings under construction, one with a HQ company, one spec, and activity is so strong that the firm is following up with another spec building. Her advice to people entering real estate world: Learn new things and learn all sides of the business to help your clients. Having a good reputation for being ethical and moral will benefit you throughout your career.