Many new projects are located within the suburban neighborhoods where employees want to live, with quality amenities, namely walkability from offices to restaurants, retailers, fitness centers and trails. Along with ample parking, those desires often work against building in urban areas. In addition, land prices are significantly lower in outlying suburban communities, allowing for the development of sprawling corporate campuses with ample open space.

The Denton County town of Westlake, population 1,151, is a good example, says Burrow. The town was originally the Circle T Ranch, a 2,000-acre ranch established by Texas oilman J. Glenn Turner and later acquired by the Perot family and its Hillwood Development Company.

Hillwood has partnered with Howard Hughes Corporation on a new mixed-use development at Circle T which will be anchored by a 500,000-square-foot, $100 million corporate campus for Charles Schwab. According to Mike Berry, president of Hillwood, the development will include a fitness center and a 200-room hotel, along with parks, nature trails and plenty of open space as evidenced by long horn steer still roaming a portion of the ranch.

Circle T is the corporate campus component of Hillwood's 18,000-acre Alliance Texas master planned mixed-use development located on US Interstate 35W, 11 miles north of Fort Worth. Alliance represents much of the growth in the North Fort Worth market area and is anchored by Fort Worth Alliance Airport, an industrial airport designed for cargo and corporate aviation, says Burrows. The town also features the region's largest multi-modal inland port, Alliance Global Logistics, an industrial and distribution hub which has attracted companies including AT&T, Bell Helicopter, GM, Lockheed Martin and UPS.

Along the State Highway 121 corridor, Billingsley Co. of Dallas is developing Austin Ranch, a 1700-acre mixed-use development in Carrollton, just north of Dallas. AmerisourceBergen, an international health care company, recently announced its plans to occupy a new $75 million 300,000-square-foot regional headquarters campus at Austin Ranch employing 3,000 workers. The site is just south of Nebraska Furniture Mart and west of Toyota's new North American headquarters campus in Legacy West at Highway 121 and the Dallas North Tollway in Plano, TX.

In Collin County, Frisco's population has grown by more than 300% since 2000. The $5 Billion Mile extending along the Dallas North Tollway is booming. Total development announced and under construction now exceeds $5 billion, with the recently opened Dallas Cowboys headquarters, The Star, a $1 billion project anchoring the corridor. Other projects include the $1.7 billion Frisco Station mixed-use project, the $700 million Gate mixed-use and office complex, and the $2 billion Wade Park community that will include a retail center, two hotels and 2.3 million square feet of office space, says Burrows.

In eastern Collin County, new projects are transforming the Central Expressway corridor from Richardson to McKinney. The largest mixed-use project along Central Expressway is the $1.5 billion CityLine development at Central Expressway and George Bush Turnpike in Richardson where State Farm and Raytheon will soon occupy 1.5 million square feet. The project's first phase will include 1,000 multifamily residential units, a 150-room boutique hotel, a fitness center and a 75,000-square-foot retail and entertainment center with several restaurants, Burrow says.

With CityLine anchoring the south end of the corridor, several other major projects are in the works in Plano, Allen and McKinney. With corporate office sites ranging from $30 to $50 per square foot in Legacy West and Frisco, land prices along the Central Expressway corridor in eastern Collin County are attractive at $8 to $15 per square foot for comparable tracts. And, neighborhoods such as Craig Ranch and Houston-based Johnson Development's Trinity Falls in McKinney appeal to the employees of many of Dallas/Fort Worth's relocated corporations.

In Allen, 12 miles north of Dallas, Watters Creek is a mixed-use development that includes office buildings across from the Watters Creek retail development on Central Expressway. Allen is planning a new convention center with a 290-room hotel, and a 60,000-square-foot conference and convention facility on Central Expressway. The owner of Allen Premium Outlets, Simon Property Group, is currently renovating and expanding the property, adding 30 new specialty retailers, restaurants and a new hotel, says Burrow.

In McKinney, The Village at McKinney is a proposed 145-acre mixed-use development site fronting US Highway 75 and Laud Howell Parkway. Henry S. Miller Co.'s land advisory group is working in concert with the owners and the city to market the project to developers, Burrow says. The site comprises one of the largest sites fronting Central Expressway, suitable for corporate campus, retail, restaurant and multifamily components in a mixed-use environment. The site also connects with McKinney's trail system and features 70 acres of green belts and natural areas.