New $100 million high-rise could catalyze Panther Island development

Fort Worth’s long-awaited Panther Island could soon be seeing its first major development project.

On Tuesday, June 2, Fort Worth City Council heard a staff presentation on a mixed-use development that would be located on the corner of North Main Street and Northeast 4th Street in Council District 2.

The $100 million project by Austin-based developer Seco Ventures would be a 12-story high-rise multifamily property with ground-floor retail. With a minimum of 290 apartment units and at least 9,000 square feet of retail space, the entire project could reach 250,000 square feet in size.

Project details

Seco Ventures is proposing to invest a minimum of $100 million in total development costs in the project – including $75 million in hard construction costs – with a goal of utilizing small business firms for 30% of its real property improvement costs.

In addition to the minimum requirements for retail space and apartments, the developer would also be required to support the delivery of several public improvements, such as creating pedestrian access to the nearby canal, accommodating select underground utilities, installing water quality devices, and more.

The required completion date for the development would be Dec. 31, 2030.

In exchange, the City of Fort Worth is proposing an Economic Development Program Agreement (EDPA) to help reduce the perception of risk and deliver a high-rise residential development comparable that future projects could look to as proof of the market.

These annual performance-based grants – which would be capped at up to $1 million per year for up to 10 years – would be delivered only if necessary, based upon the verified financial gap required to achieve a 6.5% target yield-on-cost.

If rental rates in the completed project exceed projections, the grants would be proportionately reduced; if the target yield is achieved, the grants would be reduced or eliminated accordingly.

The grants would be funded by 80% of the new incremental City property taxes generated by the project itself. Funding would be supplemented by the City’s Economic Development Initiatives Fund if needed, and the City would also waive transportation impact fees and certain other building fees as part of the agreement.

If the project moves forward, it would generate $1.6 million in gross new taxes over the life of the 10-year agreement. It would also generate $32 million in net lifetime revenue to the Trinity River Vision TIF (TIF 9) to support the financing of the Central City Flood Control Project.

The proposed incentive will go before City Council for consideration on Tuesday, June 9.

Photo: The $100 million project by Austin-based developer Seco Ventures would be a 12-story high-rise multifamily property with ground-floor retail. (Project rendering courtesy of Seco Enterprises and Gensler.)

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