Walnut Hill & Audelia - what's in the cards?
Part Three concludes the series with a report on current economic conditions, the local Real Estate market and a Skillman Corridor TIF update.
Each are important factors in the consideration of any potential redevelopment at the Walnut Hill-Audelia intersection.
Previous articles in the series can be viewed here.
It’s the economy, stupid!
Former Clinton campaign strategist, James Carville got right to the heart of the matter back in 1992. The popular campaign slogan still holds true today.
The economy is on everyone’s mind. For the better part of a year, it has been impossible to open a newspaper without seeing a headline about how dire things are for the U.S. economy.
Forecasts say things appear to be getting better.
While we should be careful to not whistle past our graves looking at some of the leading indicators, many analysts believe we've already come out of the recession.
National home prices are showing signs of stabilization, inflation has yet to rear its ugly head and consumer confidence is returning. Credit markets are still pretty tight, but seem to now be showing some signs of life.
U.S. manufacturing and productions numbers have improved substantially and unemployment is expected to top out at 10% by year's end.
Obviously, the health of the residential real estate market will be a key factor in any possible redevelopment at the Walnut Hill-Audelia intersection.
When it comes to the depressed national residential real estate market, Lake Highlands has been fortunate to remain well above the trend lines.
In fact, on average, homes in Lake Highlands are selling for more per square foot in 2009 than during the same time last year.
Surprised? Don’t be. Key factors in why our home prices have remained above the national trend lines include location (inside the loop), access to quality public schools (Richardson ISD) and a wide variety of affordable real estate.
Another reason we haven’t seen a plunge in home prices is likely due to the fact that Lake Highlands has enjoyed a very healthy, steady growth rate over the past several years.
This is in marked contrast to the massive short-term runs seen in large suburban areas across the country.
These same factors are, in part, what will ultimately convince a developer to risk millions of dollars to invest in our community.
Another factor for any developer targeting the Walnut Hill-Audelia area will be the fact that the properties surrounding the intersection are included in the Skillman Corridor Tax Increment Financing district (TIF). View the TIF map here.
In short, a TIF provides the City of Dallas a way to reinvest added tax revenues (generated from a new development) back into the area from which it originated.
Ultimately, it is likely the Walnut Hill-Audelia area would not be redeveloped to include both retail and residential properties without the Skillman Corridor TIF in play. The numbers just wouldn’t work.
