AN ADVISORY SERVICES PANEL REPORT Southern Dallas...

A N A D V I S O R Y S E R V I C E S P A N E L R E P O R T

Southern Dallas CountyTexas

Urban LandInstitute$

Southern Dallas CountyTexasA Strategy for Developing the Southern Dallas County Logistics Hub

June 25–30, 2006An Advisory Services Panel Report

ULI–the Urban Land Institute1025 Thomas Jefferson Street, N.W.Suite 500 WestWashington, D.C. 20007-5201

An Advisory Services Panel Report2

ULI–the Urban Land Institute is a non-profit research and education organiza-tion that promotes responsible leadership in the use of land in order to enhance the

total environment.

The Institute maintains a membership represent-ing a broad spectrum of interests and sponsors awide variety of educational programs and forumsto encourage an open exchange of ideas and shar-ing of experience. ULI initiates research that an-ticipates emerging land use trends and issues andproposes creative solutions based on that re-search; provides advisory services; and publishesa wide variety of materials to disseminate infor-mation on land use and development.

Established in 1936, the Institute today has morethan 34,000 members and associates from 90 coun-tries, representing the entire spectrum of the landuse and development disciplines. Professionals rep-

resented include developers, builders, propertyowners, investors, architects, public officials,planners, real estate brokers, appraisers, attor-neys, engineers, financiers, academics, students,and librarians. ULI relies heavily on the expe-rience of its members. It is through member in-volvement and information resources that ULIhas been able to set standards of excellence indevelopment practice. The Institute has long beenrecognized as one of America’s most respectedand widely quoted sources of objective informa-tion on urban planning, growth, and development.

This Advisory Services panel report is intended to further the objectives of the Institute and tomake authoritative information generally avail-able to those seeking knowledge in the field ofurban land use.

Richard M. RosanPresident

About ULI–the Urban Land Institute

©2007 by ULI–the Urban Land Institute1025 Thomas Jefferson Street, N.W. Suite 500 WestWashington, D.C. 20007-5201

All rights reserved. Reproduction or use of the whole or anypart of the contents without written permission of the copy-right holder is prohibited.

Cover photo by © Skip Nall/Photodisc

Dallas, Texas, June 25–30, 2006 3

The goal of ULI’s Advisory Services Programis to bring the finest expertise in the realestate field to bear on complex land use plan-ning and development projects, programs,

and policies. Since 1947, this program has assem-bled well over 400 ULI-member teams to helpsponsors find creative, practical solutions forissues such as downtown redevelopment, landmanagement strategies, evaluation of develop-ment potential, growth management, communityrevitalization, brownfields redevelopment, mili-tary base reuse, provision of low-cost and afford-able housing, and asset management strategies,among other matters. A wide variety of public,private, and nonprofit organizations have con-tracted for ULI’s Advisory Services.

Each panel team is composed of highly qualifiedprofessionals who volunteer their time to ULI.They are chosen for their knowledge of the paneltopic and screened to ensure their objectivity.ULI’s interdisciplinary panel teams provide aholistic look at development problems. A re-spected ULI member who has previous panelexperience chairs each panel.

The agenda for a five-day panel assignment is in-tensive. It includes an in-depth briefing day com-posed of a tour of the site and meetings with spon-sor representatives; a day of hour-long interviewsof typically 50 to 75 key community representa-tives; and two days of formulating recommenda-tions. Many long nights of discussion precede thepanel’s conclusions. On the final day on site, thepanel makes an oral presentation of its findingsand conclusions to the sponsor. A written report isprepared and published.

Because the sponsoring entities are responsiblefor significant preparation before the panel’s visit,including sending extensive briefing materials toeach member and arranging for the panel to meetwith key local community members and stake-holders in the project under consideration, partici-

pants in ULI’s five-day panel assignments areable to make accurate assessments of a sponsor’sissues and to provide recommendations in a com-pressed amount of time.

A major strength of the program is ULI’s uniqueability to draw on the knowledge and expertise ofits members, including land developers and own-ers, public officials, academicians, representativesof financial institutions, and others. In fulfillmentof the mission of the Urban Land Institute, thisAdvisory Services panel report is intended toprovide objective advice that will promote the re-sponsible use of land to enhance the environment.

ULI Program StaffRachelle L. LevittExecutive Vice President, Policy and Practice

Mary Beth CorriganVice President, Advisory Services and Policy Programs

Thomas W. EitlerDirector, Advisory Services

Nicholas GabelSenior Associate, Advisory Services

Carmen McCormickPanel Coordinator, Advisory Services

Yvonne StantonAdministrative Assistant

Nancy H. StewartDirector, Book Program

Laura Glassman, Publications Professionals LLCManuscript Editor

Betsy VanBuskirkArt Director

Martha LoomisDesktop Publishing Specialist/Graphics

Susan S. Teachey, ON-Q Design, Inc.Layout Artist

Kim RuschGraphics

Craig ChapmanDirector, Publishing Operations

About ULI Advisory Services


The panel would like to extend its apprecia-tion to the city of Dallas for asking the ULIpanel to assist the city in its effort to planfor a trade corridor in southern Dallas

County. In particular, the panel thanks Karl Zavitkovsky, director of the City of Dallas Officeof Economic Planning, for initiating the panel andengaging ULI to address the issue of an inlandport, and Heather Lepeska, management develop-ment associate, for her role in pulling together the logistics, briefing materials, and itinerary thatwere essential for the panel’s success. The panelwould also like to thank all of the involved juris-dictions—the cities of Balch Springs, Cedar Hill,DeSoto, Duncanville, Wilmer, Hutchins, Lancaster,Mesquite, and Seagoville—for their cooperation.

The panel was supported by the efforts of the Cityof Dallas Office of Economic Planning, specificallystaff members Daniel Oney, research and informa-tion manager; Earnest Lloyd, economic develop-ment analyst; Kevin Williamson, economic and geographic information systems (GIS) analyst;Sonya Smith, economic development analyst; andBrenda Caldera, office assistant.

Other individuals and representatives of agenciesand organizations providing support included thefollowing:

• Richard Allen, chief executive officer (CEO),Allen Group;

• Ed Romanov, president, Allen Group;

• Dan McAuliffe, vice president, Allen Group;

• Doc Cornutt, chairman and CEO, Argent;

• Peter Beck, managing director, Beck;

• Dan Blizzard, vice president, Belo;

• Vann Cunningham, assistant vice president,economic development, BNSF Railway;

• Jeff Swope, principal, Champion;

• Steve Modery, principal, Champion;

• Jeff Turner, senior vice president, Duke Realty;

• Tony Fernandez, executive vice president,Guaranty Bank;

• Steve LeBlanc, senior vice president, Guaranty Bank;

• David Sargent, founding partner, Hermes Sargent Bates;

• Cynthia Tari, associate, Hermes Sargent Bates;

• Roy Wilshire, senior vice president, Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc.;

• Jon Napper, partner, Panattoni;

• Mike Rader, principal, Prime Rail International;

• Gary Anderson, managing director, ProLogis;

• Denton Walker, senior managing director,Trammell Crow;

• Jim Gengler, manager, intermodal terminal operations, Union Pacific.

The panel is particularly grateful to everyone who participated in the interview process foropenly sharing information about southern Dallas County.

Acknowledgments


ULI Panel and Project Staff 6

Foreword: The Panel’s Assignment 7

Overview and Summary of Recommendations 10

Logistics 14

Public Policy 20

Development Strategies and Implementation 25

Conclusion 31

About the Panel 34

Contents


Panel ChairMichael R. BuchananManaging Director (retired)Bank of America Real Estate Banking GroupAtlanta, Georgia

Panel MembersJonathan BarnettPrinicipalWallace Roberts ToddPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania

James J. Curtis IIIPrincipalBristol GroupSan Francisco, California

Scott HallSenior Business Development ManagerCity of Chesapeake, Department of Economic Development

Chesapeake, Virginia

Gary O. A. MolyneauxPlanning & Program Development ManagerKing County International AirportSeattle, Washington

David A. StebbinsVice PresidentErie County Industrial Development Agency/Buffalo Urban Development Corporation

Buffalo, New York

Ernesto Velarde-DanachePrincipalErnesto Velarde-Danache, Inc.Brownsville, Texas

ULI Project DirectorsJo Allen GauseSenior Director, Residential Development

George Kelly IIIScholar in Residence

ULI On-Site CoordinatorJennifer BackoverConsultant

ULI Panel and Project Staff


An influx of trade from Asia, coupled withincreasing port efficiencies in the UnitedStates and the buildout of ports in Mexico,is leading to a burgeoning of trade corri-

dors across the United States. To accommodate in-creased trade, communities are enhancing and ex-panding the capacity of these routes. In particular,certain locations along these trade routes are beingsought as nexuses for logistics services, as well aswarehousing, industrial, and manufacturing facili-ties. Such colocation creates greater economies ofscope and scale by enhancing the proximity of com-plementary services and land uses.

The city of Dallas asked the ULI AdvisoryServices panel to clarify and explore the city’s options as it moves forward with participatingmunicipalities in developing an “inland port” to exploit the influx of trade. The panel was asked to review progress to date and provide directionfor future development.

An “Inland Port” and the Developmentof Southern Dallas CountyA confluence of transportation resources runningthrough Dallas, previously called the Dallas NorthAmerican Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) tradecorridor and now referred to as the InternationalInland Port of Dallas, comprises more than five interstate highways and three Class I railroads.These resources, which include major trade routesrunning from Mexican ports and the Port of LongBeach on the West Coast to destinations in theMidwest and on the East Coast, make southernDallas County a perfect site for internationalfreight and intermodal logistics facilities, which ef-fectively define the inland port concept. Becauseof Dallas County’s location along the River ofTrade Corridor, the city has sought to actualize itspotential for growth by creating a plan for devel-opment of the southern portion of Dallas County.

Foreword: The Panel’s Assignment

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Specifically, the city asked ULI to assist in creat-ing a plan for developing the southern portion ofDallas County as an inland port. The inland port is envisioned as a nexus for trade along the Riverof Trade Corridor, which would capitalize uponsouthern Dallas County’s location by providing a myriad of services, including customs preclear-ance (facilities to preclear freight traffic fromMexican and Canadian customs services in Dal-las); agile port capability (an inland facility toprocess containers from ships, thereby alleviatingbottlenecks at the busiest ports); a cargo airport(to be used for smaller, primarily consumer goodsshipments); and a foreign trade zone (which mayalso receive special state and local tax treatment).

Given these resources along with the presence oflarge greenfield sites in the study area, the panelwas asked to evaluate southern Dallas County’spotential for logistics-related development. Thispotential was to be measured in light of the inlandport characteristics previously described. Afterdetermining the area’s potential, the panel wasasked to recommend next steps, paying special attention to the transportation infrastructure, itsrelationship to surrounding communities, the needfor additional infrastructure, and the governancestructures necessary to bring about development.To streamline the process, the panel was asked to address three principal aspects of the region’sdevelopment: logistics, public policy, and develop-ment strategies and implementation.

The panel addressed the entire southern DallasCounty region, focusing on its public policy and lo-gistical characteristics with an eye toward imple-mentation and development strategies for all af-fected communities. This enlarged scope allowedthe panel to address macro issues facing the re-gion, which the panel viewed as a necessary pre-cursor to further development. This report out-lines the panel’s recommendations and providessteps for furthering development of an area thepanel calls the Southern Dallas County Trade Cor-ridor, in reference to its geography and availablelogistics infrastructure.

During its week in Dallas, the panel received nu-merous briefings from stakeholders and expertson the subjects under consideration. The panelconducted more than 50 interviews with area resi-

dents, municipal officials, representatives of publicand private sector firms, corporations, developers,and academicians to develop a holistic view of thestudy area and its inherent opportunities and chal-lenges. The panel then deliberated for severaldays, acquiring additional information, conductinganalysis, and building consensus until it reached a final and comprehensive recommendation. Thisreport represents the culmination of that processand the multidisciplinary perspective provided bythe panel’s diverse membership.

Study AreaThe panel was asked to study the entire south-eastern quarter of Dallas County, an area com-prising more than 234,000 acres that is bounded on the north and the west by Loop 12 and east-ward from Joe Pool Lake to Buckner Boulevardand from Buckner Boulevard to I-30. The south-ern and eastern boundaries are the Dallas Countyline. The area includes 11 municipalities plus aportion of the city of Dallas.

The area’s general characteristics, relative to theother portions of Dallas County, include higher unemployment and poverty rates, fewer college-educated residents, a less-skilled workforce,higher crime rates, and less development activityand availability of services. The area has a higherconcentration of minority and younger residentsrelative to the remainder of Dallas County. The inland port is viewed as a catalyst for economicdevelopment in this relatively underdevelopedsection of the city and county.

Since the project began in 2004, the city of Dallashas sought consensus by building cooperativeagreements with international and national ports.These agreements, which include agreementswith the Mexican ports of Manzanillo, Lázaro Cár-denas, and Topolobampo, are seen as a precursorto development activity stemming from the cur-rent influx of trade, which is expected to increase.The city intends to eventually establish formalagreements for freight and railway traffic directlyfrom these ports through Dallas to destinationselsewhere in the United States. These arrange-ments would guarantee the area’s prominence asan essential node along a high-capacity trade


route. In addition, a memorandum of understand-ing (MOU) has been signed with the Port of Hous-ton and the U.S. Maritime Administration. AnMOU has also been signed with the PanamaCanal. Both MOUs may serve as opportunities for increased freight and policy developments that would benefit southern Dallas County.

Although the city of Dallas has taken the lead rolein the project, an active coalition also is workingon it. In addition to the city of Dallas, the coalitionincludes Dallas County and the cities of BalchSprings, Cedar Hill, DeSoto, Duncanville, Lan-caster, Mesquite, and Seagoville. The city andthese jurisdictions, along with the jurisdictions of Wilmer and Hutchins, collectively make up thestudy area.

Further consensus-building activity at the re-gional level includes interlocal agreements thatthe city of Dallas has entered into with the citiesof Cedar Hill, DeSoto, Duncanville, Lancaster,

and Mesquite. These first steps are seen as thefoundation for agreement on planning and devel-opment of the study area.

Recent developments in the study area include an intermodal facility in the towns of Wilmer andHutchins that was built by Union Pacific (UP) in2005. BNSF Railway has expressed interest in locating an intermodal facility near BNSF’s facil-ity. The presence of two such facilities would beunique in the United States and would provide the capability of enhanced long-haul shipmentsfrom the Port of Long Beach and increased distri-bution capability by truck freight at these inter-modal facilities. The city of Dallas sees this possi-bility as a major boon for the study area.

The Union Pacific Intermodal Terminal in Wilmer/Hutchins near Dallas uses technology that significantly decreasestruck processing time.


the specific study area of southern DallasCounty while also creating a dynamic live/work/play environment that provides neces-sary services, programs, and opportunities?

The Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex Is an Inland PortThe panel began by considering the concept of aninland port as put forth by the sponsor and quicklyarrived at the conclusion that many characteris-tics described are inherent to the Dallas region.

The issues presented to the panel were wideranging, encompassing numerous topics ofsignificant importance to the sponsor andneighboring localities. In conducting its

work, the panel found framing the project as twoprimary questions most effective:

• How can the interested localities optimize thevast economic and development potentials in-herent in the study area?

• How can the interested localities optimize theeconomic and development potential inherent in

Overview and Summary of Recommendations

Southern Dallas CountyTrade Corridor.


In fact, the entire Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex—with its conglomeration of intermodal industrialand warehousing facilities, freight and railways,free trade zones and airports—represents thequalities that define an inland port.

The panel then turned its attention to the consid-eration of each element of an inland port and itspurpose within the study area. In considering the concept of an inland port in southern DallasCounty, the panel found that relating the studyarea to the entire Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex isimportant to ensure that complementary uses aremaintained and unnecessary redundancy andovercapacity avoided, the result of which wouldslacken overall supply and could negatively affectthe economy.

In analyzing the characteristics of an inland portwith respect to the entire Dallas/Fort Worth metro-plex, the panel came to the following conclusions:

• Southern Dallas County is strategically posi-tioned along major interstate highways and possesses an opportune geography for freight-related facilities and services. Moreover, theDallas/Fort Worth metroplex sits at a strategic

central U.S. location at the intersection ofeast/west Interstates 20 and 30 and north/ south Interstates 35 and 45.

• Railways running through and near southernDallas County provide a potential influx oftrade. The Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex is astrategic railway junction served by the BNSFand UP railroads as well as the Texas Pacificorailway line, which is owned by the state ofTexas. The Kansas City Southern has a branchline serving Dallas and Alliance from Shreve-port, Louisisana.

• Southern Dallas County is poised to benefitfrom a major influx of trade stemming from container shipments emanating from Asia. TheDallas/Fort Worth metroplex is a terminus for a southern road and rail corridor leading fromthe major cargo terminal in Los Angeles/LongBeach, California, which is the entry port for anestimated 70 percent of containers entering theUnited States from Asia.

• The River of Trade Corridor is the conduitthrough which the revitalization of southernDallas County will occur. The Dallas/Fort Worth

Intermodal shippinginvolves moving freightby more than one modeof transportation withoutrepacking the shippingcontainer.


metroplex is part of the River of Trade that con-nects Mexico to Canada through the centralpart of the United States.

• Intermodal facilities provide a particular char-acteristic that is the linchpin for future develop-ment of southern Dallas County. The Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex has three intermodalcargo facilities: at Alliance, Mesquite, andWilmer/Hutchins, with a fourth facility understudy in Lancaster.

• Primarily because of the metroplex’s proximityto inbound trade flows from Mexico, agreementswith Mexican ports and the natural extension of trade delivered from them provide ample de-mand for intermodal, logistics, and warehousingfacilities in southern Dallas County.

Southeastern Dallas County Is a PrimeLocation for Expanding the Metroplex’sInternational Market PotentialIn light of these findings, the panel believes thatsouthern Dallas County is a highly desirable loca-tion for expansion of the metroplex’s inland portcapabilities. The entire metroplex has both astrong, established logistics industry sector andexceptional potential for sustained future growth.Southern Dallas County is unique in the metoplexbecause of its abundance of large greenfield devel-opment sites which, the panel notes, already havebeen targeted by private development firms.

Fortunately, the communities of the southern Dal-las County region understand the need to developa strategy for smart, sustainable growth to pre-vent uncontrollable and undesirable sprawl-likedevelopment, and they have begun initial steps todirect and plan for this growth.

The following characteristics or resources definethe opportunities for development of an inlandport in southern Dallas County, an area that iswell positioned to accommodate anticipated long-term market demands:

• Geographical and land resources:

• Strategic geographic position in relation tomajor population centers to the south;

• Availability of large, undeveloped contiguoustracts of land.

• Transportation resources:

• Immediate access to Interstates 20 and 35plus close connections to three other inter-state highways;

• Access to two Class 1 railroads, the UP andBNSF; the UP already has an intermodal fa-cility at Wilmer/Hutchins and an intermodalfacility for BNSF is being planned nearby inLancaster and Dallas.

• Commercial resources:

• Already selected by experienced national andinternational commercial developers with ac-cess to sophisticated financing resources;

• Ability to create a new foreign trade zone or asubzone from an existing trade zone in themetroplex, if necessary.

• Political resources: Established cooperationamong the communities in southern DallasCounty, including the city of Dallas.

• Human and institutional resources:

• Underemployed workforce;

• Cedar Hill Community College;

• New University of North Texas at Dallascampus.

Given these resources, the panel recommends that the constituent jurisdictions of southern Dallas County take the following actions to ensurethe study area reaches its full potential of meetingthe region’s long-term business growth needs.Southern Dallas County will have to overcomeseveral issues to meet that objective.

Provide Ample, Affordable Water Sources A tremendous need will exist for an assured and affordable water source for southern DallasCounty. Several jurisdictions outside the city ofDallas currently have the ability to support large-scale industrial, commercial, and residential devel-opment on their own. For southern Dallas Countyto gain a competitive advantage, it must have the


ability to provide water in substantial quantitiesand at reasonable prices relative to alternative geographies within the county.

Create Wastewater and StormwaterManagement Systems Lack of an adequate wastewater and stormwatermanagement system that can support large-scaleindustrial or commercial development is a majorhindrance to further development. Runoff fromwaste or stormwater is a critical issue that will af-fect all land uses in the region. A regional develop-ment approach that engages all jurisdictions mustbe used to draw up a plan responding to critical is-sues and recommending concrete steps to be un-dertaken from the initial planning stages.

Build Arterial and Local Road Systems The absence of an adequate arterial and local road system to support large-scale industrial orcommercial development limits expansion oppor-tunities to select sites. Additionally, as the plan-ning process progresses and growth occurs, vari-ous uses will stretch the limits of existing trans-portation resources. Excessive usage can be offsetby creating capacity along arterial and local roadsystems, which will allow unencumbered travelthroughout the area. Efficient traffic flows will beessential to the area’s success, given its emphasison availability of transportation resources.

Institute New Environmental Precautions To limit the need for future corrective action andresulting penalties, the area should ensure that airquality and other environmental standards andmeasures are met. The metroplex already is anonattainment area for ozone pollution, whichcould restrict movement of trucks and trains

within the area at certain times of the day andmay mean that individual projects will need tomeet higher air-quality standards. The need tomeet more stringent environmental standardsmay significantly affect southern Dallas County,and the panel therefore advises the area to planfor air-quality control measures from the outset.

Cooperate on Overarching Jurisdictional IssuesMultiple local jurisdictions in southern DallasCounty need to deal with areawide issues, such as planning land use and marketing collectively, toensure that the development is not haphazard andto enhance the entire area’s development poten-tial. Without cooperation, inefficiencies will occurand detract from the development opportunity, affecting all of the area’s jurisdictions adversely. A series of frameworks amenable to such coopera-tion are detailed in the Implementation section ofthis report.

The negative local perception of southern DallasCounty has resulted in local real estate marketmyopia. This impression must be overcome to en-sure the envisaged development opportunity. Ju-risdictions therefore need to agree upon a market-ing plan to shape impressions of southern DallasCounty and redefine the area for both local andnational real estate market opportunities.

The remaining sections of this report identify and detail additional advantages and disadvan-tages, answering specific questions posed to thepanel or questions that arose independently dur-ing its research. The final section further outlinesthe panel’s recommendations and offers steps for implementation.


The Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex is in a posi-tion to benefit from transportation policy ini-tiatives currently being proposed by theU.S. Department of Transportation that

seek to identify up to five national transportationcorridors—the Corridors of the Future Program.After these policies are set, the selected trans-portation corridors may potentially receive federalfunding that will enable them to function as a vitalnetwork essential to the nation’s trading economy.

The Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex Trade HubGenerally considered, the Dallas/Fort Worthmetroplex is at the center of an extensive tradehub serving regional, national, and internationalmarkets supported by high-quality transportationinfrastructure. These resources suggest that themetroplex should be part of the new national cor-ridor system. To be considered a cooperative part-ner at the national level, however, the region mustcontinue to demonstrate its leadership capacity.The achievement of designation as a component ofthe national corridor will require leadership in thebuildout of further transportation resources. Nu-merous past and current initiatives, such as FortWorth Alliance Airport, the TransTexas Corridor,the River of Trade Corridor, and the DallasNAFTA Trade Corridor, demonstrate that thisleadership already is in place.

The southern Dallas County trade hub must beviewed as an extension of regional leadership thatwill further enhance the region’s competitive ad-vantage. Although recognized as a national tradehub, the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex is also partof a national system of trade centers. Other com-peting centers include San Antonio and Houston,as well as out-of-state metropolitan areas such asChicago, Kansas City, and Memphis. Demand inthe form of shippers seeking faster and cheapertransport of goods has led West Coast and South

Coast ports to improve upon existing systems,which will quicken the pace and means by whichfreight moves to inland trade hubs.

Port competition is driving logistics innovation,which will result in a greater need for trade hubssuch as the proposed inland port. The ports of LosAngeles/Long Beach, California; Seattle/Tacoma,Washington; and Port Rupert, Vancouver, BritishColumbia are adding infrastructure to accentuatethe movement of freight from port of entry to themarketplace. The Mexican ports of Mazatlán, Culi-acan, and Topolobampo likewise are improving fa-cilities that will link them directly to the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex, connecting the metroplexto manufacturing centers in central Mexico andthe borderlands. The Dallas/Fort Worth metro-plex must be prepared for the influx of freight andmust be capable of expediting the transfer ofgoods to local and eastern markets. The capacityto absorb an influx of trade into and through themetroplex necessitates additional resources thatwill be provided by the inland port. The panelviews these resources as being in addition to cur-rent resources, not in competition with the logis-tics supply currently existing in the Dallas/FortWorth metroplex.

Both freight suppliers and alternate shipmentmethods must be accommodated. The UP andBNSF railways are the primary suppliers offreight arriving from the West Coast. Air trans-portation shipment providers transport smallerpackages—mainly consumer goods—but in highervalue per item than rail or truck shippers. Be-cause air and rail tend to have mutually exclusivecustomer bases, such firms should not be viewedas competitors. Truck freight is transported alongboth short- and long-haul routes, with the most-efficient routes for trucking firms consisting ofnetworks of between 300 (short haul) and 600(long haul) miles. Railways, trucking firms, and airfreight services therefore provide a convergence

Logistics


of shipping conduits, in which each serves the others, depending on the weight of items shipped,distance, size, and priority. The location of facili-ties that can serve each of these service providersis an important consideration to ensure both lowcost and accurate delivery as well as options forstorage and retrieval.

Intermodal facilities that sort and distributeproducts are needed to bridge the gap betweenshort- and long-haul routes and to provide a con-duit for freight arriving from Mexican and WestCoast ports. Their presence will guarantee the inland port’s and the region’s success. The pro-posed inland port, with the Dallas/Fort Worthmetroplex trade hub as a base, will join facilities in the northern portion of the region, such as Alliance, Texas, which is home to a cargo airportand BNSF’s intermodal facility. The addition ofthe UP intermodal facility based on West Coastcargo augments the region’s capacity for rail andtruck shipments in southern Dallas County. Thisnew facility further complements the domesticcargo facility in Mesquite, Texas. Nevertheless,shipper and market demands for increased inter-modal facilities have resulted in the proposed

development of a new BNSF intermodal facilitynear the UP southern Dallas County facility.

The demand for and development of intermodalfacilities has placed the Dallas/Fort Worth metro-plex at a competitive advantage for inclusion inthe U.S. Department of Transportation’s Corri-dors of the Future Program, which is aimed at accelerating the development of multisate trans-portation corridors across the country. The pres-ence of intermodal facilities is accentuated by themetroplex’s position at the crossroads of four potential trade and transportation corridors.These corridors include the Dallas/Los Angeles,Dallas/Atlanta, and Dallas/Detroit corridors aswell as the Dallas/Mexican ports corridor.

The crossroad established by these trade corri-dors effectively creates an interdependent tradingcommunity. To reflect this reality, the metroplexshould act in unison, perhaps as part of the plan-ning and developmental process for the SouthernDallas County Trade Corridor, to establish and ex-pand partnerships with other states, cities, andports on the River of Trade Corridor. This coali-tion, like others elsewhere, would work coopera-

Containers often arrive at an intermodal facilityby train and are thenplaced on trucks to bedriven to the customer.These parked containerswill be loaded onto truckchassis.


tively with the federal government in designatingthe metroplex as a trade hub and as part of thenascent national transportation corridor system.

Competitive AnalysisAlthough the panel’s focal point is the inland port and southeastern Dallas County, the com-petitive strengths and weaknesses of the metro-plex as a whole must be assessed to betterunderstand the study area’s potential. Themetroplex’s historical growth rate will necessi-tate expansion of current industrial, distribution,and warehouse space beyond what is currentlyplanned. Demand for industrial, distribution, andwarehouse space will grow substantially in thenext decade. Over a range of ten to 15 years, themetroplex is estimated to generate demand for65 million to 120 million square feet of warehousedistribution space. That demand range was fore-cast by using a 1.5 to 3 percent growth rate overten- and 15-year horizons. The range then wastriangulated by examining relative growth rates

and absolute growth measures in other majorglobal-pathway markets.

According to Cushman Wakefield, the Dallas/FortWorth metroplex industrial market has grownfrom 256 million to 365 million square feet be-tween 1993 and 2005, adding 109 million squarefeet in slightly more than a decade. Warehouseand distribution space has grown from 215 millionto 300 million square feet over the same period,adding approximately 85 million square feet.

In comparison, several analogous cities have ex-panded similarly over the same time frame. TheChicago industrial market has grown by 175 mil-lion square feet, the Los Angeles industrial mar-ket has expanded by 100 million square feet, andCalifornia’s Inland Empire industrial market hasadded 112 million square feet. Average growthrates over this period for Chicago, Dallas/FortWorth, and Los Angeles range from 1.4 to 1.6 per-cent. The Inland Empire has experienced an ap-proximately 3 percent growth rate. These growthrates point to the likelihood of continued growth

Cranes guided by GlobalPositioning System tech-nology lift containers onand off railcars.


along major trade hubs, in concurrence with thepreviously mentioned 1.5 to 3 percent growthrates used in the panel’s analysis of the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex.

These growth rates are indicative of the metro-plex’s strengths and southern Dallas County’s potential as an inland port.

StrengthsSustainable growth has been a longstanding ad-vantage for the metroplex, producing solid growthwith relatively flat rental rates. This strength maybe further bolstered through the development ofan inland port.

A second but equally important characteristic for development in southern Dallas County is the presence of large, contiguous greenfield sites.These sites create a unique advantage for thesouthern Dallas County subregion. The sites rep-resent a development resource that, if appropri-ately exploited, will result in a significant increasein the logistical capacity of the county as a whole.

Third, the presence of a ready labor force and ad-jacent educational institutions represents a humanresources advantage for employers seeking to lo-cate in southern Dallas County. Vocational andcertificate programs, in particular, offer opportu-nities to train the sophisticated and highly skilledworkforce necessary to operate technologicallyadvanced warehousing and logistics facilities aswell as freight operations.

WeaknessesThe most apparent hindrance to the developmentof an inland port is a lack of regional cooperation.Achieving this cooperation will be the metroplex’sand southern Dallas County’s greatest challengeas other regions vie for inclusion in national initia-tives and begin to attract greater shares of matur-ing international markets. It will directly affectthe development of southern Dallas County’s inland port.

The response from local and state governing offi-cials, administrative bodies, relevant private sec-tor firms, and existing public/private partnerships

Union Pacific’s IntermodalTerminal uses a state-of-the-art security system.

to calls for cooperation will be critical. Suppliersand users will perceive the atmosphere createdthrough cooperation as a congenial environment in which to do business. To be successful in theglobal economy, jurisdictions must end city-to-city, state-to-state, and regional competition infavor of global competition.

Local competition among jurisdictions affected by the inland port will be especially difficult toforgo in early life-cycle stages. As potential siteusers begin to realize opportunities for develop-ment and procure sites, a “checkerboard” effectmay occur. This pattern of use could result in thestudy area’s having fewer of the large, contiguousparcels required by large users as the landscapebecomes dotted with smaller parcels, thus limitingthe potential to attract larger users.


OpportunitiesThe presence of large greenfield sites clearly represents a strength and an advantage. The factthat large portions of southern Dallas County areundeveloped presents an unparalleled opportunityfor the creation of balanced land uses, which couldfurther catalyze development of the region. Such a balance will enable the region to maximize in-dustrial, warehouse, and distribution space whilealso planning for the housing, retail and officespace, and infrastructure necessary to support the workforce.

The panel envisions numerous uses for theselarger parcels. Such uses would be a boon to theentire region and therefore require a regionalplanning approach to both sustain the existence of such parcels and plan for the supporting infra-

Dallas/Fort Worth is atrade hub.

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tions. Several local organizations are in place to facilitate this effort, including NCTCOG, the Dal-las NAFTA Trade Corridor Coalition, and theBest Southwest Cities. In addition, local jurisdic-tions, private sector firms, regional organizations,and the state must refine their individual market-ing and development programs to emphasize coop-eration to engender interest from the global mar-ketplace, particularly from Fortune 500 multi-national corporations, which represent potentiallarge users.

From a logistical standpoint, the southern DallasCounty inland port will increase the region’s abil-ity to absorb demand. The buildout of additionalindustrial, warehouse, and distribution space insouthern Dallas County will require implementa-tion of a balance of uses to ensure sustainability.The panel firmly believes that logistics-related development will help the region to realize its fullpotential and competitive advantage.

On the basis of its analysis of logistics potential,using the demand range for the Dallas/Fort Worthmetroplex as a base and the average economicgrowth indicators listed previously, the panel concludes that the resulting capital outlays for additional industrial, warehouse, and distributionspace, along with the hiring of attendant labor and administrative employees, will bring in taxreceipts and salaries capable of supporting a bal-ance of land uses and infrastructure throughoutthe entire metroplex. The panel also notes thatthis success is contingent on future growth, whichhinges increasingly on regional and subregionalcooperation. Such cooperation will be essential for the outgrowth of the inland port project. Themetroplex as a whole will benefit from the in-creased trade created by the inland port, whichwill buoy an influx of trade with additional facili-ties and logistics capabilities.


structure inherent in their development. Largeusers will need to be attracted on a cooperativebasis, and this effort should be a part of the mar-keting initiative for the inland port. Examples of large users that could be attracted to the areainclude the following:

• Airframe manufacturing facilities (with poten-tial sites of more than 800 acres);

• Automobile manufacturing facilities (sites morethan 1,000 acres);

• Warehousing facilities for major retailers(1,500,000–3,000,000 square feet; examples include J.C. Penney’s center at Alliance andWal-Mart’s Joliet, Illinois, facility).

Attracting any of the preceding users could be acatalytic event for southern Dallas County.

Furthermore, targeting and supporting the dev-elopment of manufacturing facilities and ware-house users who can backfill container traffic tothe West Coast will strengthen the metroplex’srole in the global supply chain. The panel’s recom-mendation is not to foreclose on opportunities forlarge users when developing a master plan.

Regional cooperation will be required to defineand agree upon a balance of land uses. A recentexample of such cooperation can be found in theagreements entered into concerning the Winter-green Road and Pleasant Run Road grade separa-tion among the cities of Hutchins and Wilmer, Dal-las County, the Allen Group, and the North CentralTexas Council of Governments (NCTCOG), and the agreement between the Texas Department ofTransportation and NCTCOG on Tower 55 freightrail improvements. Such agreements demonstratethat success is achievable through cooperation. In solving problems that affect multiple jurisdic-tions, such agreements represent the clear, open,and transparent processes required for all partiesto succeed.

Southern Dallas County should continue to ad-dress growth and development opportunities froma regional perspective through existing organiza-


The panel believes that a number of prerequi-sites exist for the successful development ofthe Southern Dallas County Trade Corridor.From a public policy and planning perspec-

tive, all of the area’s municipalities must be in-volved in the following activities:

• Initiate planning. Development is already wellunderway, and planning needs to begin immedi-ately to place all current initiatives in context.

• Create a comprehensive regional plan. Acomprehensive regional plan is needed for theentire southeast quadrant of Dallas County, asalready defined, including the relevant sectionsof the city of Dallas and the 11 other municipal-ities. This plan should be created under the direction of a steering committee representingall the government entities affected, includingthe county.

• Engage a professional staff. The plan should be prepared by a consulting team of nationalstature. This team not only should be led by anurban design and planning firm but also shouldinclude environmental and infrastructure engi-neers, real estate market analysts, and strongpublic involvement.

• Adopt uniform regulations. Ensuring the successful implementation of the comprehen-sive regional plan will require a system of de-velopment regulations that is similar across all of the municipalities involved, so that thesemunicipalities do not present a mixed messageto developers.

• Develop a capital improvement program.Implementing the plan will require a capital improvement program that specifies timingand priorities.

Public Involvement andCommunicationChange of this significance requires public inputand communication as early as possible, making itcritical that people be brought together around aclear vision of a desirable outcome. Oppositionshould not be allowed to unite around real orimagined fears of future development.

Area residents and the general public should be in-volved and informed early in the master-planningprocess, so they are aware of expected changes totheir communities and can participate in and takeadvantage of the many positive opportunities thisprocess presents. Early and meaningful public in-volvement will not only positively affect planningand development efforts, but also can remove ob-stacles to development that may otherwise be cre-ated as a result of fear of the unknown.

Land Use and Urban DesignThe vision for the area should be to create a liv-able community, not just a logistics hub. Both pub-lic and private stakeholders must address the im-portance of developing new community facilitiesand programs to serve the needs of both existingresidents and the new companies that are ex-pected to locate in the affected area. Quality of lifeand community facilities are important considera-tions for companies making location decisions.

Modern logistics and distribution facilities involvesignificant high-tech equipment that will requiregood basic education and special training. A skilledand ready workforce will be a critical requirementfor companies choosing to locate in the study area.This need suggests that additional support will berequired for the region’s primary, secondary, andpostsecondary educational facilities.

The study area already has a solid foundation forthese educational needs, with the presence of two

Public Policy


community colleges and the creation of the newUniversity of North Texas at Dallas campus. Thepanel understands that Cedar Hill CommunityCollege already has begun to develop a specialcurriculum for the logistics industry, which is anexcellent start. Establishing a new four-year uni-versity campus in the study area is not only an important symbolic development but also can pro-vide a critical educational component for the vari-ety of employment opportunities expected to becreated in the region. The new campus will alsocreate a market for a wider variety of private investment and development.

Although logistics and distribution facilities areexpected to be the predominant land use in thestudy area, the panel believes identification andpreservation of areas for a variety of other typesof land uses is important to ensure a balanced andlivable community and protect future develop-ment opportunities.

Additional IssuesThe panel addressed a variety of additional publicpolicy issues—including organizational issues, reg-ulatory issues, environmental policy issues, andtechnological policy issues—and described the op-portunities and barriers that these issues present.

Organizational Policy IssuesSouthern Dallas County constitutes a geographicarea of more than 200,000 acres, encompassing 12 different municipalities. Maximizing the studyarea’s development potential requires the creationof a cohesive regional organization that can iden-tify and address significant issues, including the following:

• Prioritization and decision making;

• Cross-jurisdictional issues;

• Transportation and utility infrastructure needs;

• Funding of special projects;

• Economic development marketing and planning initiatives;

• Use of economic development incentives.

A legitimate need exists to identify and bring together in a functional coalition all appropriategroups in a way that will enable them to meet theneeds of both the region and individual localities.

Several viable models are available for this coali-tion to follow. Such groups include the NCTCOG,which has an established and successful structurefor studying and funding of key regional issues, including the following subgroups:

• Development Excellence Steering Committee;

• Environment and Development Committee;

• Regional Transportation Council/MetropolitanPlanning Organization;

• Public Works Council;

• Water Resources Council;

• Vision North Texas Management Committee;

• Freight Working Group;

• Aviation Planning Working Group;

• Regional Training Center.

Whatever final form it takes, the intraregionalcoalition must be capable of advancing the devel-opment desires of the various localities involvedand ensuring that an open, accessible, and trans-parent decision-making process serves all stake-holders. The coalition should work closely with theNCTCOG because it controls the receipt and dis-tribution of federal transportation funds.

Regulatory Policy IssuesThe major changes expected to occur in southernDallas County need to be managed within a regu-latory framework that is uniform in its application,is fairly administered, and implements the objec-tives of the plans for the area. Although the city of Dallas already has a complete regulatory mech-anism and administrative staff in place, many ofthe other communities in southern Dallas Countyhave only part of what they need, and some haveno regulatory mechanisms at all. These communi-ties can and should work together to establish andfund regulations and administrations that serveall of them.


Each community must have a building approvaland inspection mechanism, a planning and zoningdepartment, and a planning and zoning commis-sion. Building codes and development regulationsshould be similar throughout southern DallasCounty, so that developers will not be able to playone community against another.

The panel recommends that each jurisdiction insouthern Dallas County take the following actionson regulatory policy issues:

• Enact a building code (if it does not alreadyhave one);

• Enact zoning and subdivision regulations, in accordance with a regional master plan;

• Establish a building department (if it does notalready have one) to approve building plans andconduct building inspections;

• Establish a planning and zoning department (if it does not already have one) to conduct plan-ning studies and approve development plans.

Environmental Policy IssuesEnvironmental issues that will affect developmentin southern Dallas County include air-qualitynonattainment, wetlands protection, stormwatermanagement, and environmental justice. A largepart of southern Dallas County falls within theTrinity River system, including an extensivefloodplain and large areas of environmentally sensitive land. A regional environmental conser-vation concept should be incorporated into theplanning process. Floodplains and areas of specialenvironmental sensitivity need to be identifiedearly in the planning process, so that they will notbe compromised by development plans. Buildinga regional stormwater management system intothe plan also will be critical to the success of future development.

Air-Quality Nonattainment. The U.S. Environmen-tal Protection Agency (EPA) has designated theDallas metroplex as a nonattainment area forozone standards. The current deadline to meetEPA standards is 2009. The state of Texas,through the Texas Commission on Environmen-tal Quality (TCEQ), is responsible for developingthe State Implementation Plan (SIP) for the

eight-hour ozone standard. This plan is due June15, 2007. With local input, the TCEQ is in theprocess of developing the plan and expects to beable to go out for public comment on a proposedplan by the end of December 2006. A final planthen needs to be adopted and submitted by theJune 2007 deadline. Failure to submit a plan orsubmission of an inadequate plan can result in cer-tain Clean Air Act sanctions, such as loss of cer-tain highway funding. Failure to meet the ozonestandard by the attainment date will result in thearea’s being reclassified to the next-higher classifi-cation and will require that the state submit a newSIP meeting the more-stringent Clean Air Act re-quirements for the higher classification.

In nonattainment areas, any development thatuses federal funds or requires a permit from a federal agency will be placed in the “general con-formity” category, which means that it must meethigher standards than other development. Thisclassification is meaningful for the area because of the significantly increased volume of truck andrail traffic anticipated from future logistics devel-opment. If the project area is well defined and in-cluded in the Texas SIP, however, individual proj-ects automatically will be assumed to be con-forming, and no special regulatory examinationwill be required. The city should continue to workwith the state to ensure adequate treatment inthe SIP.

Wetlands Protection. Nationally, wetlands issueshave received considerable judicial, legislative,and regulatory attention in recent years. Wet-lands issues could raise significant concerns in thedevelopment of southern Dallas County. A consid-erable amount of land within the Trinity RiverBasin, especially to the east of Interstate 45, fallswithin the 100-year floodplain. Although limitedpotential wetlands areas have been identified insouthern Dallas County, the size of the floodplainarea indicates that state and federal wetlands reg-ulations are likely to apply in significant areas.

Stormwater Management. The large-scale logisticsdevelopment anticipated for southern DallasCounty will create a vast amount of impervioussurface, primarily in large parking lots, which inturn will create significant stormwater manage-ment issues. Prevention of erosion and environ-


mental degradation through the use of regionalstormwater management systems and new sur-face paving materials will be an important issuefor new development.

Environmental Justice Classification. Environ-mental justice is defined as the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people, regardless of race, color, national origin, or in-come, with respect to the development, imple-mentation, and enforcement of environmentallaws, regulations, and policies. The U.S. EPA hasa goal of environmental justice for all communi-ties and individuals throughout the country. Ac-cording to the EPA, this goal will be achieved“when everyone enjoys the same degree of pro-tection from environmental and health hazardsand equal access to the decision-making processto have a healthy environment in which to live,learn, and work.”

Several areas in southern Dallas County arelikely to fall under applicable federal regulations.If a proposed development is likely to create sig-nificant noise or light pollution effects on adjacentneighborhoods, and these neighborhoods meet theEPA’s definition of a disadvantaged community,the project will have to meet federal environmen-tal justice requirements before it can receive anynecessary federal permits. Grants may be avail-able from the EPA’s Office of Environmental Justice to assist affected communities so that they can develop proactive, strategic, and vision-ary approaches to address their environmentaljustice issues and to achieve community healthand sustainability.

In a project of this scale, all stakeholders—includ-ing cities, private developers, and industry—mustrealize that if only one parcel within the studyarea requires a federal permit (for example, forwetlands), the entire area could be subject to ex-amination by federal regulatory agencies for com-pliance with a wide variety of issues, such as airquality or environmental justice. The region musttake a proactive approach in identifying potentialenvironmental issues.

Environmental Policy Recommendations. The panelmakes the following recommendations on environ-mental policy issues:

• Local environmental groups are becoming in-terested in new developments in the southernDallas County region and are starting to voiceconcerns. Currently, no real organized opposi-tion exists, but creating public understanding of the advantages of development soon is im-portant, so that public discussion can focus oncreating positive opportunities for the future. The region’s communities should proactively engage all environmental stakeholders in up-front discussions to position the entire metro-plex as an international model for successfulsustainable development.

• The Texas Emission Reduction Program isavailable to provide financial assistance for the replacement of high emission–producingtrain engines that spend 75 percent of their operating time within nonattainment areas.The panel recommends that local communitiesbegin a dialogue with state and federal regula-tory agencies to expand this program to includeengines for trains on long-haul, interstateroutes as well.

• Southern Dallas County’s general planning anddevelopment area should be described in termsof its potential future impact and included in theSIP to protect the potential for future develop-ment as much as possible.

• Southern Dallas County municipalities andstakeholders should begin to undertake the following efforts as soon as possible:

• Identify potential wetlands areas, either aspart of a master plan or, if the master plan isnot created soon, before the master plan.

• Engage in discussions with logistics serviceproviders to set reasonable and cost-effectiveenvironmental standards and expectations forarea and individual facilities.

• Encourage or require the use of regionalstormwater management systems.

• Encourage or require the use of newly devel-oped porous materials to reduce the amountof impervious surfaces and runoff from largeparking areas.


Technological Policy IssuesThe identification and use of new technologies hasthe potential to vastly improve the flow of goodsand people throughout the entire metroplex aswell as along interstate and international trans-portation corridors. Successful integration of tech-nology with the logistics planning process couldresult in major benefits to the local and nationaleconomies, lower costs to individual consumersand commuters, improved highway design, and ahealthier environment. In addition, the use of newtechnologies could significantly increase the safetyand security of goods and communities.

Some discussion has taken place regarding estab-lishing specific technologies—such as using radiofrequency identification devices for trucks andcontainers, establishing centers where interstatetransportation fees could be prepaid, and soforth—within the Southern Dallas County TradeCorridor. Because of the dynamic evolution oftechnologies and complexity of state, federal, andinternational trade regulations, the panel suggeststhat maximum effort be made to avoid tying thehands of and limiting industry by requiring theuse of specific technologies. Instead, the use ofcreative incentives should be considered that willencourage the private sector to create, use, and integrate advanced logistics technologies.

The panel makes several recommendations re-garding technological policy issues for southernDallas County municipalities and stakeholders:

• Consider creating a logistics technologies consortium that would include four-year andcommunity colleges, private logistics servicesproviders, and private technology companies.The goal of this consortium should be to identifyand create new products and processes to in-crease efficiencies and security.

• Explore ways to incorporate “smart road” tech-nologies on local streets and highways to moreefficiently manage vehicle movement. Numer-ous universities and companies are actively con-ducting research into the development of suchtechnologies, which include automated traffic

control systems that allow remote rerouting oftraffic in the case of blocked or congested high-ways, road sensors that monitor weather andtraffic conditions, and automated collision warn-ing and avoidance systems.

• Investigate the use of truck and container scan-ning for product confirmation.

• Work with the U.S. Department of HomelandSecurity and its Transportation Security Administration to develop proper containerscreening technologies for the detection of illegal materials, including nuclear and biologi-cal materials.

• Consider ways to confirm that containers areempty when they enter or leave a terminal.

• Investigate the use of biometric scanning toconfirm driver identity.

• Explore the use of computer modeling and sim-ulation to optimize traffic flows within inter-modal and other logistics facilities, to developthe most efficient street and highway designs,and to assess the entire logistics process.

• Investigate the use of satellite and cellular de-vices for vehicle and container tracking as wellas for truck and product security.

• Ensure easy and sufficient placement of cel-lular communication towers that will allow efficient and proper operation of logistics man-agement systems.

• Develop methods of integrating computerizedrecord-keeping systems with those at borderpoints of entry or points of origin.

• Explore innovative container seal designs to increase the ease of product tracking and con-tainer security.


The Southern Dallas County Trade Corridorpresents a tremendous opportunity for newprivate development and investment. Aspreviously mentioned, the confluence of

major transportation facilities in this area, the existence of one—and potentially a second— intermodal facility, and the abundance of largetracts of undeveloped greenfield sites near theurban core present an unparalleled opportunityfor new industrial development. Firms will locatelogistics and distribution facilities in this area totake advantage of cost savings brought about by a nexus of existing and planned transportationand warehousing facilities, as well as existing roadand rail infrastructure, which will, in turn, lowerlogistics costs and allow increased flexibility inwarehousing. For these reasons, the panel be-lieves the submarket is primed for development.

Although industrial development already is occur-ring in southern Dallas County, extensive futuredevelopment will be constrained by the lack of adequate public infrastructure, including water,roads, sewers, and fire and police services. Realiz-ing this area’s ultimate development potential,therefore, will require a comprehensive and col-laborative approach to prepare for development.

Private investors can expect reasonable returnson their investments, given the current cost ofland in southern Dallas County. However, becauseindustrial rents have not increased significantlyduring the past decade, participants in the real es-tate development process need to recognize theselimits, establish reasonable yield and return ex-pectations, and maintain cost controls. Investorscan add value to their holdings by using planningand urban design principles to create a live/work/play community. Such a community should adhereto sound environmental and sustainable develop-ment practices. Therefore, to add value, the objec-tive of both public and private stakeholders should

be the creation of a sustainable environment thatsimply does not exist today.

Given the relatively low rental rates for ware-house, distribution, and manufacturing facilities—and the existing public infrastructure constraintsthat will affect financial returns—the public sec-tor must contribute significant capital outlays to support infrastructure investments and bolsterdevelopment in southern Dallas County. Thesecapital outlays will be recouped over the longterm, through property taxes and increased regional employment.

Development Strategy The panel believes that the development strategyfor southern Dallas County must incorporate acommitment to regional planning, be focused on aspecific geographic area, include diverse land uses,and address current infrastructure deficiencies.

Regional PlanningSuccessful development in southern Dallas Countywill require a strong commitment to public/private and multijurisdictional land use and trans-portation planning, infrastructure financing andconstruction, and marketing and community development initiatives. Implementation of thisstrategy is discussed in more detail in the Imple-mentation section.

Geographic FocusAlthough private investment can and will occurthroughout the greater project area, the primaryfocus of public infrastructure investment shouldbe to support major private investment opportu-nities. This initial infrastructure developmentshould occur within a core development—or impact—area defined by the confluence of I-20, I-35E, I-45, and the two long-haul railroads,BNSF and UP. This area includes portions of the city of Dallas as well as the cities of Lancaster,Wilmer, and Hutchins.

Development Strategies and Implementation


Development already is occurring throughout theimpact area, especially where public services andinfrastructure are available. The panel thereforebelieves that the impact area should be the majorfocus for initial development, especially additionalpublic infrastructure investments. This focus doesnot preclude private sector projects and invest-ments outside the impact area. Such projectsshould not be discouraged, particularly if the pro-posed project is on a site with adequate public services and infrastructure.

Within the impact area, because of public and pri-vate investments already made or planned, spe-cific attention should be paid to two subareas.First, the Houston School Road and I-20 inter-change area should be considered because of theplanned development of the University of NorthTexas at Dallas (UNT-D) campus there and thearea’s proximity to the key trade interchange cre-ated by the intersection of I-20 and I-35E. More-over, the planned UNT-D campus suggests thatmore-diversified development—including residen-tial, retail, hospitality, and service office uses—could occur in this subarea. Second, the I-45 corri-dor in the vicinity of the I-20 interchange and theUP intermodal center already has many inlandport assets. These assets, as well as the corridor’sinterstate and rail connections to Houston, pro-vide a strong foundation for industrial develop-ment in this subarea.

Mid- to long-term development will occur alongthe I-20 corridor extending from Desoto on thewest to Mesquite on the east, but also extendingnorth and south along I-35E, I-45, and U.S. 175.

Land UsesThe panel recommends an overall vision for thearea that will create a live/work/play community.The comprehensive plan and individual projectsshould produce a diverse mix of land uses and real estate products, including industrial, resi-dential, retail, service, and community facilities. However, the core development opportunity is industrial, more specifically, big-box logistics anddistribution facilities.

The focus will and should be on the developmentof big-box distribution and logistics centers serv-ing metropolitan, multistate, regional, and some

national distribution markets. This developmentwill provide the “biggest bang for the buck” rela-tive to return on investments for the private sec-tor and, through real property taxes, for the pub-lic sector. However, a comprehensive developmentstrategy needs to include opportunities to developa mix of real estate products, including residential,retail, and “accessory” office development—suchas sales offices, support services, and so forth.This development mix should be addressed bothas part of an overall vision and master plan for thearea and within individual development projects,particularly the large-scale development projectsthat are possible in the impact area.

Although strong demand for manufacturing facili-ties may not occur initially, efforts should be madeto encourage this type of development in the future to balance the development activity in theimpact area and, most important, to expand em-ployment opportunities for area residents. Large-scale development projects should preserve lar-ger tracts of land to position both the project andthe community with the potential for these typesof projects.

Infrastructure DevelopmentBecause current infrastructure deficiencies aregoing to be critical to future plans, these plansshould address an assured source for the watersupply, as well as water distribution and waste-water purification services; arterial, service, andaccess roads; and potential transit connections.

A Coordinated Approach. The affected municipali-ties; regional, state, and federal governments; and major development firms should take a coor-dinated approach to ensure timely and appropri-ate construction of the infrastructure required toserve the area.

Capital Sources. A diverse group of investorsshould be encouraged to participate in the marketpotential offered by the area. In addition to thelarge land holdings already in the process of beingassembled and prepared, many opportunities re-main for investors and development firms plan-ning alternative product types and scales of devel-opment. Moreover, multiple and diverse investorswill enhance the area’s marketing position and itsability to attract public and private financial capi-


tal by raising the national awareness of the devel-opment opportunity and broadening the reach to-ward the end users of the properties to be devel-oped in the area.

Airports. Dallas/Fort Worth International Airportand Fort Worth Alliance Airport both have tre-mendous excess capacity for cargo operations. The panel therefore has been unable to justifyland-banking for a cargo airport at either Lan-caster or Mesquite. Both the Mesquite Metro and Lancaster Municipal airports may be betterpositioned as corporate and commuter airports tosupport the area’s business and industrial devel-opment potential.

ImplementationThe panel believes that a new governmental en-tity will be required to realize the development of the Southern Dallas County Trade Corridor and suggests a number of models that could beused to create such an entity. It also makes sev-eral recommendations regarding funding andstaffing this entity.

Organize for SuccessThe foundations for governance have already been established with the creation of the DallasNAFTA Coalition and the contractual and inter-local agreements that have already been executed.What is required next is to formalize and broadenthis governance coalition to more effectively dealwith the challenges faced by the community.

All of the key stakeholders involved in and af-fected by this project need to be represented toensure the success and sustainability of the devel-opment opportunities presented by the area andits market potential. The governance and over-sight body should possess the powers necessaryto ensure a regional approach in developing theimpact area. The intent of such an entity should beto engender cooperation and ensure that prudentmeasures are taken in the development of theSouthern Dallas County Trade Corridor.

Faithful execution of the coalition’s recommenda-tions and a unified voice will be essential to engag-ing the business community and bringing thecoalition’s vision to fruition. Ongoing monitoring,

benchmarking, or other metrics should be estab-lished to determine parameters of success for thenew entity. These tangible measures must be in-dicative of ongoing economic effects in the impactarea and will serve as a basis for future decisionson growth and sustainability.

The overall cost of constructing the basic infra-structure that will be required to facilitate andsustain new private investment is substantial. Acoordinated and cooperative approach toward im-plementing this infrastructure will be needed toeffectively plan for and construct the water sup-ply, sewer, storm drainage, and other facilitiesthat will be required to support expected develop-ment. An effective and responsive organizationwill also ensure that new development in this areaof the metroplex will optimize benefits for existingresidents and communities in the impact area andthroughout the metroplex. The communities ofWilmer, Hutchins, and Sunnyvale must becomepart of the governance entity created to overseeexpected future development in the area.

The panel recommends that the governance andoversight body should include representatives ofat least the following key organizations:

• The state of Texas, including both elected offi-cials and representatives of key agencies, suchas the Texas Department of Transportation;

• The North Central Texas Council of Governments;

• The two major railroads operating in the project area, BNSF and UP;

• The University of North Texas system in Dallas and the community colleges operating in the impact area;

• Key domestic and foreign private sector inter-ests, including major property owners, real es-tate development companies, and logistics,transportation, and shipping companies.

The panel recommends that the organization beresponsible for taking the following actions:

• Developing a master plan for the project area;


• Coordinating infrastructure investments andconstruction;

• Identifying and securing funding for infra-structure investments;

• Identifying and facilitating implementation ofthe port, trade, and logistics programs and facil-ities that will enhance the area’s market posi-tion as a trade and logistics hub;

• Developing a public communications plan;

• Marketing the overall area as a trade and logis-tics hub and creating a comprehensive externalmarketing plan;

• Establishing a cohesive voice and policy posi-tion, in particular as it relates to state and fed-eral policy and funding requests;

• Ensuring opportunities for a diverse array of investors to participate in the opportunitiespresented by the logistics hub;

• Identifying and coordinating public develop-ment incentives;

• Engaging decision makers in manufacturing/exporting firms from fast-growing East Asianeconomies, such as China, South Korea, Singa-pore, Malaysia, and Japan, and keeping themabreast of geographic and cost advantages by illustrating the logistical opportunity thearea represents.

Governance ModelsA number of models are available to establish the organizational structure of this entity. Effortsto create an inland port authority and the re-gional partnership approach represented by theNCTCOG also present opportunities to structurethe appropriate type of organization.

The Southern Dallas County Trade Corridor covers an area of more than 200,000 acres and in-cludes 12 jurisdictions. In addition, the state andthe NCTCOG play important roles in determiningthe future of the area. The panel suggests that anew governance structure be established to guidethe future of the corridor and proposes three gen-eral models for cooperation and governance—allof which have demonstrated success elsewhere—

that it believes local jurisdictions should reviewand evaluate. Each of these models provides varying levels of responsibilities, powers, andfunding sources and capabilities. All include pri-vate sector participation.

Cooperative Agreements Model. This model isbased on a nonbinding agreement among partici-pating entities to manage the development and re-view process for the corridor. The model providesa “place at the table” for all parties. The approachenables technical and oversight committees towork within the established policies of the partici-pating jurisdictions. Projects and programs suchas roadway and utility infrastructure are priori-tized, and recommendations are returned to theappropriate local jurisdiction for implementation.Land use decisions are made by the affected juris-dictions, while activities such as local financing,grant applications, or regional funding are coordi-nated and leveraged through an oversight and coordinating committee.

This model allows jurisdictions to retain local control but permits review by other participatingjurisdictions and the private sector. To be success-ful, local jurisdictions must have defined policiesto guide the work of the oversight and coordinat-ing committee. The disadvantage of cooperativeagreements is that jurisdictions may change pre-viously agreed-upon priorities and policies andwithhold needed resources.

Special District or Authority Model. State statutespermit a wide variety of special-purpose govern-mental units, including infrastructure districts andport and development authorities. This model re-quires the establishment of a specific boundaryand a prescribed set of powers, and it is usuallylimited to a single issue or task, such as port oper-ations, rail operations, or a water district. Specialdistricts require the approval of the state legisla-ture. The governing board can be federated,elected, or appointed.

Special districts generally have limited authority,such as land use development, port operations, orthe development of specific infrastructure likewater and sewer services. In many cases, the landuse authority applies only to land directly ownedor controlled by the district. General land use zon-


ing and permitting authority often remains withthe local community. The size of the Southern Dallas County Trade Corridor and the identifiedneed for water, sewer, transportation, and otherinfrastructure services may suggest that morethan one special district would be required to address this array of needs.

Special-purpose units of governments can be sup-ported by a variety of taxing sources. Tax rev-enues are generally limited to specific uses in theauthorizing legislation. Finally, a special districtthat potentially encompasses up to 11 local juris-dictions and addresses land use, infrastructure,and development issues may not represent thebest model for success.

Interlocal Memorandum of Agreement (MOA)Model. This model formalizes the relationshipsamong the participating parties through a bindingagreement. Participating jurisdictions and other or-ganizations, through the agreement, grant certainlimited rights to a new cooperative organization.This organization could be a government agency,nonprofit corporation, or cooperating committee.

The interlocal MOA model would define a level ofauthority and a set of responsibilities, such asplanning, permit reviews, infrastructure prioriti-zation, and development management. The MOAmodel permits the participation of all parties andcan and should include private sector and regionalrepresentation. The model encourages jurisdic-tions to establish clear policy direction whiledefining an equitable funding mechanism for sup-porting the new organization.

The establishment of an interlocal MOA is timeconsuming and may not initially include all juris-dictions. Local jurisdictions will need to clearly de-fine a vision and supporting public policy for thenew organization. The advantage of this model isthat many of the jurisdictions already have inter-local agreements in place concerning infrastruc-ture and development issues. These agreementscan serve as a basis for establishing an implemen-tation agency to guide the development of theSouthern Dallas County Trade Corridor.

Coordination and GovernanceRecommendationsThe panel recommends that the local jurisdiction,in partnership with the NCTCOG and the privatesector, establish a working group to review the issues that should be contained in a potential in-terlocal MOA. Such an agreement would establisha new organization to guide the development ofthe Southern Dallas County Trade Corridor. Mem-bership in the new organization should include af-fected local jurisdictions, representatives of theprivate sector, the NCTCOG, and the state. Localjurisdictions would retain traditional responsibil-ity for land use decisions and funding based on theplans and priorities provided by the new organiza-tion or agency.

Because of the limited time the panel has had tounderstand local governance issues, it is unable torecommend a specific governance structure. Itfirmly believes, however, that a cooperative, coor-dinated approach to development is essential forthe area’s long-term, sustainable success.

Interlocal agreementstructure.

Funding. The governance entity will require fund-ing to carry out its mission, to engage consultantsto prepare the master plan, and to hire staff tooversee those efforts. The panel recommends thateach of the stakeholders participating in the gov-ernance entity contribute to the operating budget,taking into account each participating stake-holder’s ability to pay.

A comprehensive regional funding strategy mustbe addressed if the area is to accomplish its long-term goals and needs. Individual localities will notsurrender control over their own budgets, butrather all stakeholders will be working toward ac-complishing a set of agreed-upon regional goals inaddition to locality-specific budgetary needs. Theregional funding strategy should include the iden-tification of available programs and resources tobe used, such as special-purpose districts for infra-structure development, mechanisms for leverag-ing public money, and public/private partnerships.

The region may be eligible for many of the signifi-cant number of state and federal grant and loanprograms available to logistics and transportationcorridor projects. A regional strategy should sig-nificantly reduce intercity competition for thesefunds, increasing the likelihood of approval by thevarious state and federal agencies.

Staffing. Initially, support for the coalition—in theform of economic and feasibility analysis—may beprovided by the City of Dallas Department ofEconomic Development. This initial researchcould serve as a launching point for the coalition’sestablishment of an authority to oversee the im-pact area. However, the governance entity willeventually—and soon—require a dedicated, full-time staff. At a minimum, this staff should be ledby a professional familiar with the logistics indus-try, real estate development, urban planning, pub-lic infrastructure, and public policy. As the organi-zation matures, hiring additional staff to assistwith marketing, community relations, and financ-ing may be desirable. A national search should beconducted to seek an individual with a provenrecord of success in creating industrial, logistics,and light-manufacturing developments to headthis entity.



The panel believes that the region is in an ex-cellent position to formulate and realize a vision for the Southern Dallas County TradeCorridor. The area is a highly desirable loca-

tion for expansion of the metroplex’s inland portcapabilities and is well positioned to accommodateanticipated long-term market demands. Local municipalities understand the need to develop astrategy for smart, sustainable growth to preventuncontrollable and undesirable sprawl-like devel-opment and have begun steps to direct and planfor this growth. The panel recommends that thecity of Dallas and other local municipalities takethe following actions as they work together to for-mulate and realize their collective vision.

Create a Cohesive Vision The vision for the area should be a livable commu-nity, not just a logistics hub. A comprehensive andcoordinated master plan for the entire study areais necessary to maximize development opportuni-ties, overcome some of the disadvantages previ-ously identified, encourage the development of liv-able communities, protect natural resources, andensure the long-term sustainability of new devel-opment. The master plan must provide a cohesivevision for the entire area that cuts across multiplejurisdictions without overriding individual munici-palities’ land use and development controls.

Preparation of the master plan must begin as soon as possible and should be completed as ex-peditiously as possible. Development already isoccurring in the impact area, and the opportunityto adequately plan for this development is slipping away.

The master plan can and should provide a frame-work for decision making with respect to phasingand capacities of infrastructure investments. Theprocess required to create the master plan canand should include a comprehensive and detailed

inventory of existing infrastructure and shouldidentify current and projected infrastructure andcapacity needs as well as various institutional ve-hicles for constructing, operating, and maintainingthe infrastructure.

Plan for a Balance of Land UsesAlthough logistics and distribution facilities areexpected to be the predominant economic driversin the impact area, the panel believes identifyingand planning for a variety of other types of landuses—including those described below—are im-portant to ensure a balanced and livable commu-nity and protect future development opportunities.

ResidentialNew residential development will be important tosustain logistics-related development and to pro-vide housing for new employees. Residential areasshould be effectively buffered from industrialareas, and conflicts between residential develop-ment and truck traffic should be minimized.

Light ManufacturingAlthough the market potential for manufacturingand light industrial appears to be limited at pre-sent, designating and preserving areas for manu-facturing will be important because opportunitiesfor such development likely will arise in the fu-ture. The very large tracts of greenfield sites ad-jacent to key transportation facilities present arare opportunity for a major industrial facility.The current practice of returning a large percent-age of empty containers to ocean port facilitiescurrently served by the intermodal centers sug-gests an opportunity to add value to the supplychain and return containers filled with finishedgoods produced in the metroplex. Furthermore,manufacturing and light-industrial developmentwill expand and enhance employment opportuni-ties for area residents.

Conclusion


affect area residents—mostly in a positive way.Keeping residents informed and involving themand the general public early in the planning pro-cess, so they are aware of expected changes totheir communities, is important to provide mean-ingful participation and allow residents and smallbusinesses to take advantage of the many positiveopportunities presented to them.

Early and meaningful public involvement will not only result in positive adjustments to planningand development efforts but can also remove obstacles to development created as a result offear of the unknown. The panel recommends thata public communication plan include the following:

• Public forums and information meetings held atkey milestones in the planning process and inspecific subareas of the larger impact area;

• A newsletter;

• A dedicated website.

Work Closely with OutsideStakeholdersIn addition to the communication process with thegeneral public, the jurisdictions will need to workclosely with stakeholders from outside the area.The panel recommends the establishment of an“advisory council” of port authorities to identify or create opportunities for cooperation. The pur-pose of the council would be to engage U.S. andMexican port directors and other relevant trans-portation officials, as well as customs services andforwarding brokers, to exchange information onindustry trends and gather information on the po-tential for growth and improvement of existing fa-cilities, services, and operations.

The panel also recommends the creation of an alliance with U.S.—as well as Canadian andMexican—freight carriers and their associations(rail, shipping, and truck) to better meet theirneeds by defining, for example, mutual operatingstandards for freight carriers and facilities. An-other important element in this effort will involveestablishing, maintaining, and strengthening tieswith import/export banks, state and federal trade

Additional UsesRetail, hospitality, and service office developmentwill also be required and desired to support andsustain the primary logistics and transportationdevelopment. Appropriate areas for these types of development need to be identified.

Community FacilitiesVarious community facilities, such as parks, re-creation centers, and schools, will be needed tosupport and enhance the area’s livability. Parksand facilities that provide recreation opportuni-ties for residents and employees can also protectnatural resources.

For all of the area’s municipalities to unite arounda single plan, these land uses must be distributedequitably among the municipalities, consistentwith the specific character and location of eachmunicipality. Finally, the plan needs to go beyondconventional means of land use allocation to shapethe three-dimensional character of landscapes andbuildings and enable the creation of compact,walkable, mixed-use communities.

Communicate the OpportunityIn addition to a master development plan, the areawill need a comprehensive master marketing plan.The impact area’s potential needs to be well com-municated to the market at large and, in particu-lar, to targeted users. A marketing package willhelp further delineate the benefits of the SouthernDallas County Trade Corridor and encourage out-side investment. Inherent in the marketing plan isa thorough market analysis defining targeted in-dustries or sectors, both domestic and interna-tional. A thorough analysis of potential users forthe corridor as a whole and, in particular, for theintermodal facilities, as well as warehousing andpotential manufacturing sites, will provide thenecessary direction and next steps for creation of amaster marketing plan. Local economic develop-ment and relevant federal agencies should be usedas conduits to distribute and market the plan.

Keep the Public InvolvedThe new logistics and distribution developmentsexpected to occur in this area will significantly


representatives, and national and internationaltrade organizations.

Explore Creative Approaches toInfrastructure DevelopmentAs previously mentioned, the area requires exten-sive infrastructure improvements, and the cost ofdeveloping this infrastructure will strain localgovernment finances. Creative and cooperativeapproaches will be required to secure the neces-sary funding to construct this infrastructure.Stakeholders will need to use every tool at theirdisposable to accomplish this task. These tools andresources, many of which have been used in otherparts of the metroplex and are familiar to theproject stakeholders, include the following:

• Tax increment financing;

• Special-purpose districts;

• Cooperative agreements with private investorsto provide the financing necessary to constructpublic infrastructure upfront in return for fu-ture reimbursements from the municipality;

• State infrastructure banks and Section 129loans;

• Existing state and federal grant programs.

Stakeholders also will need to cooperatively seekspecial state and federal funding for critical infra-structure projects that are regional in nature oraffect multiple local jurisdictions. Securing an ade-quate water supply is a critical infrastructure

need for the area and, based on information sup-plied to the panel, one in which the city of Dallaswill play a crucial role. The city of Dallas must bewilling to share its water supply with other af-fected communities if the region—and the city—is expected to realize its full potential.

Create a Livable Community, Not Just a Logistics HubPublic and private stakeholders should focus oncreating a livable community that offers new com-panies and existing residents a desirable quality of life. New parks and recreation facilities will be needed.

Logistics companies considering moving to south-ern Dallas County will look for a skilled and readyworkforce. Achieving this goal will require addi-tional support for the region’s primary, secondary,and postsecondary educational facilities.

The area already has a solid foundation for theseeducational needs with the presence of two com-munity colleges and the emergence of a new Uni-versity of North Texas campus at Dallas. In addi-tion, Cedar Hill Community College has begun todevelop a special curriculum for the logistics in-dustry, which is an excellent start. The establish-ment of a new four-year university campus in theimpact area would provide a critical educationalcomponent for the variety of employment oppor-tunities expected to be created in the region aswell as creating a market for a wider variety ofprivate investment and development.


Michael R. BuchananPanel ChairAtlanta, Georgia

At the time of his retirement, Buchanan was man-aging director of Bank of America Real EstateBanking Group in Atlanta, Georgia, where he wasresponsible for homebuilder and commercial realestate banking nationwide. Buchanan spent 30years with Bank of America and its predecessorbanks, where he was involved in all phases of realestate banking.

Buchanan is a graduate of the University of Ken-tucky, the Harvard Program for Management De-velopment, and the Stonier School of Banking. Heis a member and past trustee of the Urban LandInstitute and served as development vice chair ofthe Institute’s Suburban Office Council. He is anactive member of the Real Estate Roundtable andits Real Estate Capital Policy Advisory Commit-tee. Buchanan serves on the board of directors ofthree publicly owned and three privately ownedcompanies in the real estate industry. He also hasserved as a trustee and a member of the executivecommittee of the Georgia Conservancy and as amember of the Nature Conservancy’s real estateadvisory board.

Jonathan BarnettPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania

Barnett is an architect, planner, educator, and au-thor of numerous books and articles on the theoryand practice of urban design. He has been anurban design adviser to many U.S. cities, includ-ing long-term associations with Charleston, SouthCarolina; Cleveland, Ohio; Kansas City, Missouri;Miami, Florida; and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Hehas also been an adviser to several U.S. govern-ment agencies, including the General Services Administration, the National Park Service, the

Department of Housing and Urban Development,the National Endowment for the Arts, and theNational Capital Planning Commission.

Barnett’s work on large-scale urban developmentand redevelopment projects includes the reuseplans for the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard; theTreasure Island Naval Station in San Francisco;the former air force base in Myrtle Beach, SouthCarolina; and reuse plans for former railway yardsin Philadelphia and Sacramento, California. Hewas the urban designer for studies of the OceanView Avenue corridor in Norfolk, Virginia; theHighway 111 corridor plan for Indian Wells, Cali-fornia; and the Euclid corridor in Cleveland.

His work on suburban development includes stud-ies of development guidelines for four townshipsin western Pennsylvania; the urban design forDaniel Island, a 4,500-acre planned communitynear Charleston, South Carolina; and the masterplans for the Village of Irvington, New York, andBrookfield, Wisconsin, a suburb of Milwaukee.

Barnett is also a professor of city and regionalplanning at the University of Pennsylvania. Hewas formerly professor of architecture andfounder of the graduate program in urban designat the City College of New York and has been theWilliam Henry Bishop visiting professor at Yale,the Eschweiler Professor at the University ofWisconsin, the Kea Distinguished visiting profes-sor at the University of Maryland, and the SamGibbons Eminent Scholar at the University ofSouth Florida. His books about urban design in-clude Urban Design as Public Policy, Introduc-tion to Urban Design, The Fractured Metropolis:Improving the New City, Restoring the Old City,and Reshaping the Region.

A magna cum laude graduate of Yale, Barnettholds a master’s of arts degree for the Universityof Cambridge, and a master’s of architecture fromYale. He is a fellow of the American Institute of

About the Panel


Architects, a member of the American Institute ofCertified Planners, and a member of the UrbanLand Institute.

James J. Curtis IIISan Francisco, California

Curtis is a cofounder and principal of BristolGroup, Inc. Bristol Group is a real estate invest-ment and development firm based in San Fran-cisco. Its portfolio is national in scope and consistsof more than 13 million square feet of propertiesand more than 3 million square feet in the devel-opment pipeline. The firm is broken into two com-ponents. The first is a private industrial companyof more than 9 million square feet focused in sou-thern California, Chicago, northern New Jersey,and Miami. The second component consists of avariety of value-added opportunities.

Curtis serves as a trustee of the Urban Land In-stitute and is a past chairman of the Small ScaleDevelopment Council. He is also a member of andon the board of governors for the Counselors ofReal Estate and Lambda Alpha International.

Curtis holds a BS in finance and economics fromMarquette University and an MS in real estate/urban land economics from the University of Wis-consin. He was a cofounder of the University ofWisconsin Real Estate Alumni Association in1976. In 2004, Curtis received the Counselors ofReal Estate’s Lovejoy Service Award. In 1997, hewas presented with the University of Wisconsin’sGraaskamp Distinguished Alumni Award.

Scott HallChesapeake, Virginia

Hall is the senior business development managerfor the City of Chesapeake, Virginia, Departmentof Economic Development. While with Chesa-peake, a city of 220,000 residents in the HamptonRoads region of Virginia, Hall has gained experi-ence in international marketing, enterprise zoneadministration, comprehensive land use planning,and redevelopment planning.

He has worked ten years as an economic develop-ment professional, including research, small busi-

ness development, business assistance, marketing,and planning. Hall has also served as research di-rector for the Virginia Peninsula Economic Devel-opment Alliance, a regional public/private eco-nomic development marketing organization.

A native of West Virginia, Hall received his BA inpolitical science from Marshall University in 1985and his master’s of urban studies from Old Domin-ion University in 1999. He served as a commis-sioned officer in the United States Navy before en-tering the field of economic development. He is amember of the Urban Land Institute, the Interna-tional Economic Development Council, the South-ern Economic Development Council, the Interna-tional Council of Shopping Centers, the Brazilian/American Chamber of Commerce, the VirginiaEconomic Developers Association, and ACCRA.

Gary O. A. MolyneauxSeattle, Washington

Molyneaux is a transportation and land use devel-opment specialist. He has more than 25 years ofprivate and public experience in rail, aviation, sur-face transportation, and cargo services. He servedas the executive director of the Washington StateRail Development Commission and currentlyserves as the airport planning manager for KingCounty International Airport/Boeing Field(KCIA) just outside Seattle. KCIA is the nation’s28th-largest air cargo center and is home to UPS,BAX, and DHL.

Molyneaux served on Governor Gardener’s TaskForce on the Financial Future of WashingtonState—Transportation Committee. He currentlyserves on the Regional Cargo Strategy Commit-tee for the Puget Sound Regional Council. He re-ceived a master’s degree from Southern IllinoisUniversity–Edwardsville and a PhD from theUniversity of Illinois in geography and planning.He is a member of the Airport Systems CapacityCommitttee, Transportation Research Board, andNational Academy of Sciences. He is a full mem-ber of ULI and has served on two previous advi-sory service panels.


David A. StebbinsBuffalo, New York

Vice president of Buffalo Urban DevelopmentCorporation, a local nonprofit development entitythat specializes in urban and brownfield redevel-opment, Stebbins also serves as Waterfront Proj-ects coordinator for the Erie County IndustrialDevelopment Corporation, which is responsiblefor coordinating over $100 million in waterfrontprojects in the city of Buffalo.

Stebbins formerly served as chief executive officer and chief operating officer for Buffalo Economic Renaissance Corporation, a local not-for-profit economic development corporationresponsible for all economic development activi-ties in the city of Buffalo, including lending andpublicly sponsored real estate development proj-ects. Stebbins managed development of a varietyof real estate projects, including multitenant in-dustrial buildings and downtown mixed-use,urban infrastructure, brownfield redevelopment,and business park projects.

Stebbins has 25 years of diversified experience inurban planning and development, with a BA in en-vironmental design from the University at Buffaloand an MA in city and regional planning from theUniversity of North Carolina–Chapel Hill. Hequalified as a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners in May 1986 and has been aULI member for 17 years, having recently beenaccepted as a full member.

Ernesto Velarde-DanacheBrownsville, Texas

Velarde-Danache, an attorney licensed only inMexico, was admitted to practice in 1982 after receiving his law degree from the UniversidadRegiomontana. He holds an LLM from the Uni-versity of Cambridge, England, and has attendedcourses pertaining to international law in Mexico,the United States, and the Netherlands. He wasthe Mexican representative to the InternationalYear of Peace Conference held at the United Na-tions in Geneva, Switzerland. He is a member ofthe Cambridge Graduate Lawyers Society and theNational Association of Corporate Lawyers ofMexico, the National Association of CorporateLawyers of Mexico and the Mexican bar.

Velarde-Danache has been associated with thelargest corporate law firm in Mexico City as wellas with a local international law firm in Browns-ville, Texas. In 1988, he started his own practice as a Mexican lawyer in Brownsville, Texas, andMatamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico; he has recentlyopened an office in Reynosa, Tamaulipas, Mexico,to provide legal services to the local maquiladoraindustry. Currently, he has offices in the threecities as well as associated offices in Monterrey,Nuevo Leon, and Mexico City.

Velarde-Danache is the president of the Mata-moros Business Development Committee and amember of the International Bar Association,Toastmasters International, Brownsville RotaryClub, and Brownsville Economic DevelopmentCouncil. He is also the host of a live Mexican tele-vision show called Con Sentido Común, which airson channel 7, Televisa. He is fluent in English,Spanish, French, and Italian.

AN ADVISORY SERVICES PANEL REPORT Southern Dallas...

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