HOUSTON – (Realty News Report) – The land that was once envisioned by University of Texas leaders as the home of a large data science institute has been listed for sale.
JLL has been retained by The University of Texas System to market the 216 acres, located just south of Loop 610 near the Astrodome.
The site is less than three miles from the Texas Medical Center.
“Potential users for the site include life science companies, Big Pharma and biotech labs, as well as advanced medical manufacturing, public or private institutions of learning, government agencies and religious organizations,” JLL said. “The site would also support high-density single-family, multi-housing and senior living uses.”
The JLL Capital Markets team representing the seller is led by Davis Adams, Rusty Tamlyn and also includes Scott Galloway and Colby Mueck and Chris Curry.
“It is extremely rare to find a large contiguous development site in a premier infill location in any major market in the United States,” Adams said. “The site is ready for immediate development with proximity to billions of dollars of infrastructure located in the Texas Medical Center.”
The university acquired the land several years ago.
Retired Admiral William T. McRaven, the war hero who became chancellor of the University of Texas System envisioned transforming 300 acres into a data science institute that tapped into the great intelligence at the nearby Texas Medical Center, area universities and Houston’s corporate community.
In a series of deals, the University of Texas paid a whopping $215 million for about 300 acres, which are near the intersection of Buffalo Speedway and West Bellfort, close to Willowbend Boulevard and Highway 90.
But the push-back was fierce, as opposition to the plan emerged from the University of Houston, Gov. Greg Abbott, State Senator John Whitmire and others.
McRaven, the man who directed the Navy SEAL commando mission that killed Osama Bin Laden, resigned from the university in 2018.
With its location near the Medical Center, the area has attracted the attention of residential developers in recent years.
Near the UT site, Pulte Homes recently announced plans to develop the Avondale project – 145 homes on 11 acre with multi-story homes priced around the $300,000s. Construction will start this fall and model homes will open in the first quarter of 2020.
The gated Pulte community will have two- and three-story homes ranging from 1,490 SF to 2,618 SF. Townhome pioneer Frank Liu of Lovett Homes has been active in the area,
More than 100,000 people are employed in the Texas Medical Center. More than 10,000 employees at the TMC hold PhD degrees or are medical doctors.
Aug. 27, 2019 Realty News Report Copyright 2019
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