Companies Leaving Dallas?

[dallastophoenix]

Dallas losing competition for businesses
11:26 PM CDT on Thursday, October 16, 2003
By STEVE BROWN / The Dallas Morning News

The lights are on, but is anybody home?

That's what businessman Ross Perot Jr. is asking about Dallas' economic development effort. Mr. Perot spoke last week at a conference sponsored by the North Dallas Chamber of Commerce. He talked mostly about his real estate business, the economy and the like. But what really woke up the audience was his assessment of Dallas' economic development effort. His conclusion: There isn't one. "Dallas proper isn't even in the game," Mr. Perot said. "My fear is there is business interested in coming to Dallas, and we don't even call.

"And what we really need is a big corporate relocation back into Dallas proper," he said.

He also frets that Dallas isn't trying to keep the companies it has. "In Dallas, it's too easy to go to Frisco and do your deals," he said. "Too many business leaders have bypassed Dallas." Mr. Perot cited the recent move of Perot Systems Corp., his data processing firm, from North Dallas to Plano. "We never heard a word from anyone in Dallas," he said. "After we had moved to Plano, the mayor and two council members came by my office to welcome us." And when Haggar Corp. – one of Dallas' oldest corporate citizens – announced in July that it was pulling up stakes and moving to Farmers Branch, the decision didn't even register on Dallas' radar screen.

Mr. Perot's message wasn't what real estate execs expected to hear. "What he is saying is very disturbing," said Mary Frances Burleson, president of Ebby Halliday Realtors. "I had no idea this was going on." Dallas real estate appraiser Chuck Dannis was also somber after Mr. Perot's assessment. "It's something we all should be worried about," he said. With local companies slashing jobs, the real estate sector needs to attract new businesses and hang onto the ones we have.

For their part, Dallas economic development representatives will tell you that they actively promote both the city and the region to relocating companies. But economic development officers at the Greater Dallas Chamber acknowledge that their mission hasn't been about business retention. "We do corporate relocations and expansions for the city of Dallas," said Bill Sproull, vice president of economic development for the chamber. "The city pretty much handles retention." If Neiman Marcus had taken that approach, it would have gone out of business decades ago. Keeping your existing customers is as important as attracting new ones – whether you're a retailer or a city.

In North Texas, with its many suburban cities and separate economic development groups, the city of Dallas has sometimes been outflanked by smaller but more potent rivals such as Plano, Frisco and Irving. Part of that is because of outdated etiquette – Big D wants to play nice and not jump into the fray with scrappy smaller cities. But just as our nation's corporate giants discovered they couldn't avoid getting into the trenches with start-up competitors, Dallas will have to come out swinging unless it wants its business epitaph to read, "Gone to Frisco."

****this is really sad...

[TexasStar]

This is just plain disturbing. Who is reponsible for this in Dallas? Is it the Mayor, the Chamber of Commerce? Whoever it is needs to get it in gear and get Big D back in the game.

[mikedsjr]

Never being a Dallas resident, i have a different reaction. At least they are in the DFW area. Dallas has a whole lot more to worry about than which city the big corps move into in the area.

The fact remains that the offices are in this region. And probably closer to their workers than Dallas proper and in better School Districts.

[gc]

This is crap.
My response is this. Email blast the following:

Dallas Economic Development Department - http://www.dallas-edd.org/
Greater Dallas Chamber - http://www.dallaschamber.org/
Dallas City Council - http://www.dallascityhall.com/dallas/eng/html/contact_mcc.html


This is their responsibility. What the heck are they doing? I do not get it.

[psukhu]

I think it has to do with where most of the employees live.

My firm was looking to upgrade their office space. They looked at a map and marked where each of our employees lived, even the entry level guys who live in apartments. The center fell in the northern 'burbs. They decided to look along the tollway from Beltline to Parker.

My friend's firm has their office in one of the Galleria towers. When they did the same research, they found that many people lived in Uptown. The firm is now considering a move to Downtown or Uptown.

Let's hope the urban housing boom continues...

[TexasStar]

I do have another thought about this. Are we sure this is not just the petty sniping of a one rich guy who was peeved when nobody puckered up to kiss his little butt?

I mean we have been seeing companies moving into Dallas proper recently including a bunch in the Mountain Creek Business park, for example.

I don't know what to make of this opinion from Perot. He just might be full of it.

[dallastophoenix]

That might be a possibility, TexasStar.

One question though: why can't the city of Dallas have a department that deals solely with retention - or better yet, tie this in with the relocation dept.? I mean, come on... the city (likely) spends millions of dollars every year to woo potential businesses here, and then we don't even check up on the businesses we already have?

It seems like an endless cycle for the relocation dept.... as soon as someone moves in, someone moves out b/c they got a better offer from a neighboring city, or even worse, never received any help from the city to begin with...

I'm w/ GCarey... let the city know how we feel!

[mikedsjr]

That's all well and good. But why would a big company want to move to Dallas when they can have spacious land in cities where they get probably better tax protection and their employees don't have to worry about the schools?

You guys forget that not everyone want to have to bus their kids to some special school the city has created for upperclassdom instead just walking your kids down the block to a safe and quality school district who excels.

Dallas in the core is for the single, gay, poor, homeless, and married with no children crowd. Many businesses do well there. But for those businesses who try to care for their employees needs and families, the Suburbs are safer, more children friendly, and have nicer schools.

I may be a white flight child, but i don't blame them. You can criticize the suburbs for being havens of better living all you want.

The bottomline is those businesses are still in the area. Its just like if it happened to big companies in Fort Worth. If they moved out of Fort Worth to a neighbooring city where more of their employees live, i wouldn't blame them. Who doesn't want to work closer to home.

[bloodandpopcorn]

mikedsjr, you love the environment, right?

I hope you realize that business NOT being centralized is what allows sprawl to exist, and what will in a century or two eat up most of our nation's nature.

If all North Texas business were confined to DTD, DTFW, and Los Collinas (this is an example, you could also throw in the galleria if you want, but let's stick with these three right now), and was all densely built, we would not see suburbs grow north of Allen. We might even see Allen die. The only reason people use schools and public utilities and such as excuses to live in the suburbs is because most of them can get to a job near them. The majority of people in Allen probably don't work in Dallas. And as we see suburbs grow an hour further up 75, the percentage of workers going all the way to DTD will be very little. This works, because businesses can go suburban. They can go to the edge of the current metropolitan area, and allow for suburbs to spawn further out for their workers. But if they didn't, if all business was confined to the three areas outlined above, densely built, much less earth would be needlessly developed. We would grow in a much more logical way, using less space, and be all the better for it. Suburbs would stop much sooner than they do right now.

On the current pace, sprawl will eat up most of America's nature in the next few centuries. I don't want that, and I assume that you don't want that either. That's why business moving Downtown is better. For everyone!

Should there be laws mandating things like this? Hell no. But whenever a company makes a decision to centralize, it is in a way a strike against sprawl (America's greatest internal nemesis, in my opinion).

[gc]

mikedsjr,
I am not trying to attack you, but I got some questions for you as I digress.

Do you like traffic?
Do you like traffic that spans all directions during an entire day?

What happens when large businesses move out of the core of Dallas/Fort Worth/Irving and head out to Richland Hills, Frisco, Alliance Airport, Allen, Carrollton, Lewisville, DeSoto, Southlake, and Mansfield? It makes traffic a constant nightmare regardless of time and location. In my opinion, it also makes the wonderful suburban life (which I'm sure I'll enjoy again one day) less beautiful, less safe, less peaceful, more congested, and more chaotic. Ultimately, it is not the haven of better living that it should be. As a result, air quality is bad in the burbs, crime is worse than people like to admit, streets are as crowded as ever, and kids don't seem to be safe walking to school anywhere! Anyhoo...I know there is more to it than this and I apologize for the digression.

uhhh I'm done now!

[mikedsjr]

B&P,

I understand sprawl is going to continue. That is why i support the Wildlands Project. The Wildlands project is a must to protect the land. Most of what they do is volunatarily by landowners to oneday give the rights of their land to this conservation orginization and also they buy land. All of these lands are interconnecting to create large areas for all kinds of animals to roam. Once they have enough of these large areas close enough they will certainly work on creating corridors in between these large areas to allow wildlife to roam freely through. The faster these core areas can be created and the faster these corridors can be created between these core areas, the better off this nationas natural enviroment will be. But if the US Government would get involved in their objectives, it would certainly speed up the process. If they US could layout the areas that would be protected in the future, like they do with land for future highways, for these corridors and core areas for wildlife protection, the cities could build accordingly, thus allowing cities to sprawl out however they choose, but not allowed to building in these core areas.



Like i stated, this is all volutary right now, and will take many years maybe over 100 to really get a good core area across the US going.

[mikedsjr]

GCarey,

There are sometimes when Doing unto other what you would want them to do to you is not always easy or good. I tend to communicate in a "uninformed but i will say what i think so you can tell me like it is" kind of way. It may can out bad. So i hope i didn't come across with too much a Suburban chip on my shoulder.

Right now, i drive about an hour to an hour and a half one way each day. That could be be up to 3 hours in the car each day in traffic. In someway, i don't mind it. When i get home i don't listen alot to the radio because there is so much to do or i will play with my son, so driving in my car is a way for me to catch up on what is happening with my teams, the Cowboys and Mavericks by listening to The Dunham and Miller show in the mornings and listening to Randy Galloway or the Hardline in the afternoons.

Sure i would love to be home quicker, but I had my job in Dallas before i got married to my wife who lived in NRH at the time. Now we live in Fort Worth. Didn't make that much of a difference in time to get to work, even though i moved 6 miles further west. But currently driving down 170 and 114 is some of the most beautiful parts of DFW that i've seen. Partly because Perot developed it that way. But its beautiful. Lots of open space. You don't get lots of open space in DTD. Look at Plano by the tollway. EDS. JC Pennys. Frito-Lay. Big Businesses. Lots of Open Space. Large walking trail around JC Penneys. Another favorite of mine is the Plano walking trails. Fort Worth has good walking trail system too. Not just one trail, but mulitple trails all connected and easy to get to.

As for traffic Congestion, I guess i just take it as part of driving. I really don't see the difference between driving down Knox in Dallas, Rufe Snow in NRH, and Park in Plano. The biggest difference is the size of the street. Not really the number of people.

I think i am rambling. The basic jest is that DT Dallas area is for the 20-34 crowd with no kids for the most part.

[gc]

Originally posted by mikedsjr
The basic jest is that DT Dallas area is for the 20-34 crowd with no kids for the most part.
That is certainly a true statistic among other age groups as well.

That is cool if you handle the driving. More power to you. It made me miserable, literally! We agree to disagree. Cool.

Anyways, enough of this nonsense. This is about Dallas losing business...and why it should not be!

[Columbus Civil]

mike does make a good point that DISD is seen as a detriment to attracting/keeping businesses. If I had kids (ha!), I'd move to the suburbs in a heartbeat.

I would think that lots of companies would consider proximity to their workforce in determining where to locate.

[TexasStar]

It was interesting, at least to me, to see the article immediately following the one detailing Ross Perot, Jr's comments at the Dallas Chamber in Steve Brown's column:


Constar warehouse

ProLogis, the Denver-based industrial building investor, has signed what it says is one of the largest warehouse leases in North Texas this year.

Constar Inc., which makes plastic containers, leased a 636,480 square-foot space in the Pinnacle Park project just west of downtown Dallas. Constar will distribute products to soft drink manufacturers out of the facility.

"Pinnacle Park meets all of Constar’s needs because it allows us to continue to operate from a central location between two major customers, Dr. Pepper in Irving and Pepsi in Mesquite," said Jerry Hatfield, Constar’s vice president of operations.


Apparently, everyone doesn't agree with the notion that Dallas can't compete for business.

[gc]

Alan Walne: Dallas can't afford to let businesses go
12:05 AM CST on Wednesday, October 29, 2003
By ALAN WALNE
http://www.dallasnews.com/opinion/viewpoints/stories/102903dnediwalne.1899d.html

Greyhound. Yahoo. Centex. Ernst & Young. KPMG. Those and other high-profile companies are examples of the success that Dallas has had in business retention and expansion.

Just in the last decade, economic development efforts have played a leading role in more than 55 companies either remaining in Dallas or expanding here.

In good times and bad, the competition to hold on to local business while recruiting new companies always is fierce. Both the public and private sectors are pushing hard to keep local companies in place and encourage new business to move here.

City Hall has been willing to compete for business. To encourage individual local businesses to stay at home, the city has invested heavily in improving infrastructure, rebating fees and delaying or abating a portion of their taxes.

All told, incentives helped retain or create more than 21,400 local jobs, including 10,000 in southern Dallas, just since 1998. The southern sector can point to new businesses like Lowe's, Wal-Mart, Overhead Door, Costco, Pro-Line and Garden Ridge.

Also, infrastructure – such as streets, sewers and parks – is critical to making a city work. With that mind, city officials and community leaders, including the Greater Dallas Chamber, joined forces earlier this year to plant the seeds of the city's future.

The result: Voters approved a record $555 million bond issue for growth and improvements.

Does more need to be done to keep or attract business?

Absolutely.

The mayor and the City Council are crucially important to the city's push to hang on to businesses, large and small. Dallas companies of every size are being wooed to other cities, counties and states.

At a time when all of us are concerned about budget cuts and tax rates, it will take the city's political leadership to build on the last decade's successes in business retention and expansion.

Specifically, I encourage the mayor, the council and the city manager to take a hard look at incentives. Are they competitive enough?

It also may be necessary to invest in beefing up the city's economic development staff to ensure that we retain companies. Is the staffing competitive with the suburbs and other major cities in the United States?

The new $555 million bond package also is an important part of the solution. The sooner that the bonds are sold and construction of downtown and southern Dallas projects begins, the better it will be for economic development.

Dallas leaders know that business is a huge component of the local tax base. That recognition is why the city has taken an aggressive approach when it comes to keeping Dallas companies in Dallas.

With the right incentives, a can-do attitude and the new bond package, the city should be able to step up its efforts.


Alan Walne is a member of the Greater Dallas Chamber and a former member of the Dallas City Council.

[gc]

Adea to shift HQ to Irving, add 200 workers
http://dallas.bizjournals.com/dallas/stories/2004/05/10/daily31.html?jst=b_ln_hl

Adea Solutions Inc. will move its corporate headquarters to Irving from Dallas and plans to hire up to 200 people by the end of the year.

The privately held technology consulting company said the move would increase its space to 67,000 square feet from its current 40,000 square feet. Adea Solutions now splits its facilities between two buildings near the Galleria in Dallas; its corporate base is in one building, while the other houses development labs.

With the move to One Panorama Center in the Las Colinas development of Irving, Adea will consolidate both facilities under one roof. The expanded space will allow the company to increase development capacity and make room for new hires.

"We have been fortunate that the 70 percent growth rate we experienced in 2003 has gained momentum in 2004, and we are taking advantage of a number of market dynamics, including the availability of cost-efficient real estate, to position us for long-term profitable growth," said Chairman and Chief Executive Abid H. Abedi.

Adea employs about 1,300 people. It will add up to 200 technology professionals at its new location by the end of 2004.

The move to Irving is expected to be completed by June 30, Adea said.

[gc]

Cosmetics marketer to relocate from Plano to Houston area
Mary Ann Azevedo - Correspondent
Dallas Business Journal
http://dallas.bizjournals.com/dallas/stories/2004/05/31/daily28.html?jst=b_ln_hl

Gurwitch Products LLC, which markets high-end cosmetics line Laura Mercier, announced Thursday that it will move its headquarters and global distribution center from the Dallas suburb of Plano to Stafford, a Houston suburb. Since 1995, the company has had executive offices in Houston, where the CEO and the company's sales and marketing staff are located. Product development and global distribution have been housed in Plano, says Bob Hurtte, Gurwitch's senior vice president of operations.

Gurwitch plans to consolidate the two offices into one 40,000-square-foot facility in the Freeport Southwest Business Center in Stafford. Hurtte says the company does not anticipate that many members of its distribution staff will be relocating and that the company "will need to hire about 50 people or so" in the Houston area. The company will begin operations this summer and will employ about 75 people in administration and distribution in Stafford. The company has a total of 300 employees across the United States, Canada and United Kingdom.

Gurwitch Products, which is 51-percent-owned by Dallas-based Neiman Marcus Group Inc., produces, manages and markets Laura Mercier Cosmetics and Skincare. Annual sales have grown 25 percent in each of the past four years

[drumguy8800]

what a depressing thread..

[rantanamo]

you win some, ya lose some. The eb and flow of business

[Lakewooder]

Um, makeup melts in Houston.

"One Panorama Center" omg what a name.

[gc]

from Steve Brown's Real Estate report....
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/columnists/sbrown/stories/060404dnbusrecol.bbb9a.html

Another exit

Another high-profile Dallas employer is departing for the suburbs. Coca Cola Enterprises leased 119,000 square feet of office space in Centura Tower in Farmers Branch. About 400 employees will be relocated to five floors of the building at the Dallas North Tollway and Spring Valley Road. The workers are currently housed on Lemmon Avenue and in the Galleria office complex on Noel Road, according to a spokesman. The Lemmon Avenue location is just blocks from where Haggar Corp. had its headquarters before moving to Farmers Branch earlier this year. Dale Ray and Malcolm Ross of Jones Lang LaSalle arranged the lease with Stuart Smith of Equis and Robert W. Farrar & Associates. The transaction brings the building to about 95 percent occupancy.

[drumguy8800]

whoopdecrap. All these megacompanies are annoying me.

I don't drink coca-cola anyway. (except diet coke with lime cause that stuff is really good.)

*pouts*