Tarrant Business

Tarrant County residential foreclosure postings down for the January auction

Residential foreclosure postings in Tarrant County are down 29 percent for the January auction from a year ago, Addison-based Foreclosure Listing Service said Friday.

 The postings are down 26 percent in the four-county area of Tarrant, Dallas, Denton and Collin for the Jan. 3 auction.

In all, 4,075 postings were filed, putting the figure well below the 5,500 mark for the 11th consecutive month, said George Roddy Sr., president of the listing service, nearly surpassing the low mark of 4,024 postings in August.

In Tarrant County, 1,334 filings were posted for the January auction.

For 2011, postings were down 9 percent in Tarrant County and down 12 percent in the four-county area.

_ Sandra Baker

Tarrant County commercial foreclosure postings fall for the first time since 2003, report shows

After peaking in 2010, foreclosure postings on commercial properties in Tarrant County dropped 13 percent this year, according to a year-end look of figures by Addison-based Foreclosure Listing Service.

The real estate information company analyzed postings in Tarrant, Dallas, Denton and Collin counties. For the area, postings fell 14 percent, to 2,860 filings from 3,313 filings in 2010.

It’s the first time in six years that commercial filings are down, said George Roddy, president of Foreclosure Listing Service.

"Notices during the previous year . . . appear to have been the peak, at least so far," Roddy said.

In all of 2011, 1,064 postings were filed on properties such as apartments, office, retail and industrial buildings in Tarrant County.

By property type, the largest decline, 39 percent, came on apartment communities in Tarrant County. But, filings increased 24 percent, to 102, on office buildings, figures show.

Overall filings were down 5 percent in Dallas County, and down 29 percent each in Denton and Collin counties.

Roddy said for the first time in three years, the number of postings filed on apartment communities in the four counties fell below 350.

Filings increased 20 percent in the area on industrial buildings, figures show.

_ Sandra Baker

Finalists for Fort Worth small business awards named

A dozen Tarrant County businesses are finalists for the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce's annual Small Business of the Year Awards. They were chosen from 83 nominees and 38 applicants. A list of the finalists by category is here.
-- Jim Fuquay

City Place in downtown Fort Worth announces plans

Dallas-based Spire Realty Group, the developer of City Place in downtown Fort Worth, Monday said it is beginning construction of a retail promenade and an outdoor plaza with green space on the 2.15-acres that has been cleared of a former outlet mall structure.

The retail space will include 30,000 square feet for shops and restaurants, Spire said. 

"The redevelopment of City Place will return the property to its prior stature and represents an important milestone in the city’s history," said Caleb Smith, Spire’s owner and president, in a statement.

Spire Realty bought City Place in February. The development covers four blocks at Third and Throckmorton streets and includes two 19-story office towers, developed by Tandy Corp. in 1976 and 1978. The towers were renamed City Place by the previous developer that bought the property in 2001.

(Photo of City Place demolition shot in August by the Star-Telegram's Joyce Marshall.)

Two City Place, the tower closest to Weatherford Street, was renovated in 2008 and is currently 82 percent leased. One City Place has not yet been redeveloped, but plans call for it to also become office space. It has been vacant since 2005. Peloton Commercial Real Estate will handle office leasing.

The retail space and outdoor plaza was designed by WDG Architecture. Rogers-O’Brien Construction has been named the general contractor. Venture Commercial will handle the retail leasing.

The redevelopment will include an eight-story parking garage with the retail space on the street level and a two-story annex building. The annex will serve as an entrance to One City Place. In front will be a small motor court for dropping off and picking up passengers.

-- Sandra Baker

 

 

Mercantile Center in north Fort Worth to build two warehouses

Mercantile Partners said Monday it will start construction by the end of December on two office/warehouse buildings totaling 188,000 square feet in Mercantile Center off of Interstate 35W and Meacham Boulveard in north Fort Worth.

The two buildings, each 94,000 square feet, will be known as Mercantile Distribution Center 5 and 6. Tenant entries will front on Sylvania Cross Drive.

The occupancy rate in the 1,300-acre Mercantile Center reached 95 percent this year and prompted the new buildings, the developers said.

The building are speculative, meaning they have not been pre-leased prior to construction.

Bob Moore Construction is the general contractor. Hardy McCullah/MLM Architects provided design services.

Nearly 70 companies are located in Mercantile Center, including the Federal Aviation Administration regional headquarters, CitiAssurance, Dillard’s, Sprint, Sara Lee, Saxon Mortgage, TTI, Trane and and Medtronic.

_ Sandra Baker

THR, physician group picked for Medicare program

Texas Health Resources, one of North Texas' largest hospital groups, and North Texas Specialty Physicians said today they were selected to participate in a new federal effort to treat Medicare patients using a collaborative system called an Accountable Care Organization. Arlington-based THR and the Fort Worth-based physicians' group are among 32 organizations nationwide that will operate under Medicare's Pioneer ACO Model, which aims to provide more coordinated care at lower cost. THR and NTSP said they already use a health information exchange that allows them to share patient records electronically. The only other Texas party in the Pioneer program is Seton Health Alliance in Austin.

Jim Fuquay

Charter launches TiVo Premiere in Fort Worth

Charter Communications cable TV customers in the Fort Worth market now have access to TiVo through Charter for the first time.

Charter is launching TiVo service across its markets through the first half of 2012, and is already making it avaialble in the Fort Worth area.

“Tivo Premiere,” as the package is called, blends TV channels with Charter on Demand interactive content, YouTube and more. Customers can begin a recording in one room, pause it, and pick it up in another room.

Free iPhone and iPad apps allow customers to search, browse, and share entertainment without interrupting what’s on TV, allow customers to use their devices as remote controls. An Android app is upcoming in 2012, Charter says.

“We’ve had DVRs for several years,” Kevin Allen, a Charter spokesman in Fort Worth, said. “We’ll still offer the other DVRs. This is an additional offer. It’s top of the line. It’s the best DVR product.

TiVo boxes cost $20 per month for the first box, and $10 per month for secondary boxes.

- Scott Nishimura

Fort Worth-Arlington up 17,200 jobs for the year, Texas Workforce Commission says

Here's a look at how Fort Worth-Arlington's jobs numbers are shaping up this year through November.

Eight of 10 major industry segments are up for the year, and Fort Worth-Arlington's total nonfarm employment is up 17,200 jobs to 871,000 through November, according to the Texas Workforce Commission.

Major industry segments, their November jobs figures, and change from a year earlier:

• Mining, logging and construction: 54,700, up 1,700
• Manufacturing: 86,500, up 700
• Trade, transportation and utilities: 208,500, up 6,700
• Information: 12,900, down 600
• Financial activities: 53,200, up 1,800
• Professional and business services: 97,800, up 5,200
• Education and health services: 108,800, up 500
• Leisure and hospitality: 95,800, up 6,600
• Other services: 31,500, up 100
• Government: 121,300, down 5,300

Government includes public school teachers.

- Scott Nishimura

Texas jobless rate drops, state adds 20,800 jobs in November

Here's the story at star-telegram.com on Texas' jobs report today.

- Scott Nishimura

Container Store says it expects a 2013 opening at Fort Worth's Chapel Hill

Nina Smith, a spokeswoman for The Container Store, got back with the Star-Telegram to say the company, which has seven store openings slated for 2012, expects the Chapel Hill opening in Fort Worth to be in 2013. Here's the updated print story.

Here's our initial blog post from yesterday.

- Scott Nishimura