By Scott Nishimura snishimura@bizpress.net
AllianceTexas, the 18,000-square-foot development anchored by Alliance Airport, is projected this year to surpass $55 billion in economic impact to North Texas since its inception in 1989, its developer, Hillwood, said Tuesday.
Hillwood, in the annual report it makes to the city of Fort Worth, has paid more than $1.4 billion in taxes to the eight public taxing entities that cover the development.
Last year’s impact by itself was nearly $5 billion and includes the creation of nearly 3,000 jobs, Mike Berry, president of Hillwood, told Mayor Betsy Price and the City Council.
“We’ve been in a great market for 25 years, and we’ve been the beneficiaries of a lot of assets in this region,” Berry said.
Alliance has reached the point where its growth is generating substantially more, he said.
“It’s almost become organic growth at this point,” he said.
Total capital investment over 25 years has been about $8 billion, including $7.7 billion in private money and $450 million in public.
That is a 17-1 private-public ratio, “pretty good leverage no matter what business you’re in,” Berry said.
AllianceTexas, in 25 years, has generated more than 9,000 single-family homes, 1,159 multifamily homes, and 40,000 direct jobs at 400 employers, Hillwood said.
A focus of Hillwood is the continued development of the 900-acre-plus Alliance Town Center mixed-use development, Berry said.
It includes hike and bike trails, medical, living, office, retail, and a main street. Cook Children’s recently acquired a site next to a Texas Health Resources facility, and will build Alliance’s fourth hospital.
AllianceTexas launched Alliance Town Center in 2007.
“The best thing is we’ve got another 5,000 acres or so to develop,” Berry said.
Councilman Sal Espino thanked Berry and Hillwood for their “continued advocacy” of transportation access into far North Fort Worth.
“It’s a great partnership between the city, the private sector, and now the neighborhoods,” Espino said.
“They’re not done yet, and that’s what’s important,” Councilman Dennis Shingleton said.
“It’s always fun to see those tax figures,” Mayor Betsy Price joked.