One University
News that a development called “The Mullet” was making its way into the West Seventh corridor manifested in uninhibited exuberance for many.
A mixed-used development with business in the front and a party in the back. It was unique if nothing else. And it was better than, say, The Perm.
However, keen discernment and sound judgment are why John Zogg was brought on by Goldenrod Companies to be its president of the southwest region.
He took a pair of the sharpest clippers he could find to the name “The Mullet,” which was never to be the name of the development anyway. It was merely a placeholder.
“That was the first thing I did when I got here in April was to change the name,” Zogg says with a wry smile through Zoom. “Sorry, but I can't attract corporate clients with that name. I know the reasoning, it was a placeholder, and everybody loved it. I've got to attract some big banks and wealth managers and stuff. It can't be ‘The Mullet.’”
Nothing else, however, was touched by the trimmers on what is now the highly anticipated One University development.
Located on University Drive south of Camp Bowie Boulevard, the project will include a nine-story office tower that will include 110,000 square feet of office and retail space, as well as 240 apartments and a 175-room hotel.
It is one of two major plays being made in the Cultural District by Goldenrod, the Omaha, Nebraska-based developer, which is also developing the Van Zandt.
The Van Zandt, with 250,000 square feet of office and retail space, along with luxury multifamily, will be constructed at 2816 W. Seventh St., where it intersects with Foch Street.
Total combined cost of the two will be in the neighborhood of $400 million.
The Fort Worth City Council is lending support in the form of more than $30 million in economic incentives.
“I gotta tell you,” Zogg begins before spilling what he’s got to say, “I've worked in cities around the country doing things like this development and others. This is the best-run city for getting things done and being reasonable to the approach.
“The mayor always takes our calls — she's responsive. Councilmember [Elizabeth] Beck, same thing … super responsive. In economic development, Robert Sturns and Michael Henning, they're just superstars. It's not like the stereotype [of bureaucracy and government]. They're businesspeople getting it done. I've told a lot of people that. The city of Fort Worth is doing it right, and that's why people come to Texas, because of governments like Fort Worth.”
Goldenrod is among the finalists in the redevelopment project of the Fort Worth Community Arts Center, home of the beloved Scott Theatre.
“I love that property,” says Zogg, a University of Texas graduate who spent almost 30 years with Crescent Real Estate. “We have competition [for the bid], but we like our plan. We think it creates a lot of revenue for the city to make sure that that is kept maintained at a proper level for a long, long time. Plus, it just activates it; it makes it a vibrant site, and redoing the Scott Theatre will be a great thing to make that a jewel versus where it is today. The bones of it are amazing. The architecture of bones are great.”
When we spoke, bids were being taken for the developments in the Cultural District. Zogg says he expects the same general contractor to do both.
“We think we’ll find some efficiencies there,” he says.
The Van Zandt will break ground this spring with a delivery date of 2026. One University will be about four months behind with a completion date of 2027, Zogg says.
The name of The Van Zandt development is reference to an important part and person in Fort Worth history. Maj. K.M. Van Zandt was a banker in the late 19th and early 20th century Fort Worth. History recalls Van Zandt as a civic leader who helped bring railroads and new business and industry to the city. He represented Tarrant County in the state Legislature and was a one-time gubernatorial candidate.
At one time, Van Zandt owned 600 acres between the Trinity River and what is now the Will Rogers Memorial Center, including the Farrington Field property. The Van Zandt Cottage is the only remaining building on the property he owned. Van Zandt constructed the first bridge that spans the Trinity River on Seventh Street. It was called the Van Zandt Bridge.
“The Cultural District is just about to take off,” Zogg says. “It's a perfect location. You think about uptown Dallas 10 to 15 years ago, that's the Cultural District. It really is. It's going to be a preferred location for a lot of uses, and having one of the best museum districts in the world right across the street from us is just a huge advantage.”
The Van Zandt
It also sits only a stone’s throw from Crescent Real Estate’s $250 million development.
The West Seventh corridor has been negatively impacted by a vibrant, overzealous nightlife that city officials have been trying to reform in recent years. The murder of a TCU student last year was one of a number of well-documented incidents.
The city has committed to taking the steps necessary to firm up the area, including a Public Improvement District that will augment the area with additional lighting and security cameras, and security personnel and law enforcement.
Developments like the Crescent’s and Goldenrod’s also represent marketplace reform. Goldenrod’s developments will not include leases to any bar establishment not associated with the hotel or restaurants there.
That was not something the city asked it to do.
It also stands to reason that the developments planned and to come will also likely alter the economic dynamics to a degree that the bars ultimately will be squeezed out.
“I think that the ownership of that district — and I'm not talking about us; I'm talking about the aggregate — all have their eyes on the ball to correct and make that a great place. To me, Fort Worth is a great opportunity to do something super cool for the city to attract businesses from around the country, and it should come to the Cultural District because that's got so many pieces that are already there that are really hard to copy or make.