Page 88 - FDI Alliance International Magazine. Spring 2021 Digital Interactive Issue

MCKINNEY RESILIENCY AND

INNOVATION IN A PANDEMIC

In August of 2020, five months into the first pandemic in modern
times, office buildings were well below 50% of their pre-pandemic
occupancy, retail activity was down, and business sentiment was
looking forward to a reopening story, McKinney, Texas was making
headlines. The McKinney Economic Development Corporation
partnered with Kaizen Development Partners to develop a 200,000
square-foot Class AA tower in suburban North Texas as a part of
a larger mixed-use project, District 121. The district will include a
large outdoor space, restaurant options, and a modern Class AA
office tower, complete with a technology program anchored by
achieving a Platinum Wired Score, dense fiber and 5G services.
In January 2021, a 55,000 sq. ft. building in Downtown McKinney
sold to a group to implement an innovative co-working concept,
Common Desk, on the first two floors (open June 2021). The third
floor is remaining as-is for a single tenant. The building was built in
2018, has ample parking, and is steps from the Historic Downtown
Square and adjacent to multi-family. These are just two of the recent
commercial developments that have occurred in McKinney and with
many more in the pipeline we will have something for every business.
District 121 and Common Desk are only part of what is shaping
up to be a record year in North Texas for commercial real estate
due to pent up demand in the market.

The McKinney Economic Development Corporation has secured
over $110 million in capital investment to the City in the first three
months of 2021. Anchored by a scorching hot housing market and
an influx of companies wanting to relocate from the East and West
Coast, available inventory and land are being snapped up at a
pace McKinney hasn’t seen before.

88. FDI ALLIANCE INTERNATIONAL