Harwood Lands Equity Partner for Dallas Office Project

Rooftop terrace and garden at Harwood No. 14. Image courtesy of Harwood International

Harwood International moves forward with the development of Harwood No. 14, a 360,000-square-foot office tower in Dallas, with new joint venture equity in place. With the assistance of JLL Capital Markets, the developer secured a joint venture partner for the Class AA project.

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JLL’s Bill Fishel and DJ Meagher represented Harwood in the transaction. All parties are remaining mum on the identity of the source of the equity. The Dallas Central Appraisal District Records website notes a deed transfer date in late 2020 to a multi-owner, HIC XIV Limited Owner LLC.

Harwood No. 14 will carry the address of 2801 N. Harwood St. in Uptown Dallas within the Harwood District, Harwood’s master-planned enclave designed to ultimately feature more than 11 million square feet of premier office space, residential offerings and retail space amid a plethora of urban gardens and open green space. ” With 6 million square feet of future potential for development, our focus is to continue growing within our 19-city block Harwood District,” David Roehm, executive vice president with Harwood International, told Commercial Property Executive.

Harwood No. 14 is the vision of a team consisting of the architectural firms Kuma & Associates, Corgan and HDF, and will encompass such amenities as 15,000 square feet of restaurant space to be occupied by Harwood Hospitality Group, as well as a 17,000-square-foot rooftop and sky garden. The 27-story, nature-inspired tower will also feature a finned curtainwall system that will be the first of its kind in the city of Dallas.

“Harwood No. 14 is a continuation of Harwood’s ongoing plan to satisfy market-driven demand,” Roehm said. “We have historically experienced high occupancy in our market, and we continue to see strong tenant growth inside Dallas as well as unprecedented demand coming from outside of the city.” Harwood No. 14 is 45 percent preleased to law firm Haynes and Boone LLP, which will serve as an anchor tenant with roughly 126,000 square feet of space.

Good things come to those who wait

While the numbers may not currently reflect a loud cry for space in the Dallas office market, a muted call can perhaps be heard in the distance. According to a first quarter 2021 report by JLL, employees continue to return to the office in Dallas at a significantly higher rate than other major markets. And there are more positive conditions on the horizon.

“The optimism and tour activity seen this quarter will likely cause positive net absorption by the end of the year,” according to the JLL report. “The construction pipeline is down almost 600,000 square feet from the first quarter of 2020, as spec construction has been limited, and the pipeline is currently 40 percent preleased. Due to the balanced pipeline and increased demand, vacancy should stabilize by the end of 2021.” Harwood No. 14 is on schedule to deliver in the second quarter of 2023. Manhattan Construction Co. is aboard the project as general contractor.