Stadium view can mean higher rents at Arlington office buildings

If Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones can command higher prices for better views at Cowboys Stadium, why shouldn’t Arlington office building owners ask higher rental rates with views of the venue?

"We’ve considered view pricing," Kurt Cherry, senior vice president of leasing for PM Realty Group, told a group of about 200 developers, city and business leaders, and real estate professionals last week.

Asked whether tenants are excited to have stadium views, Cherry said, "I certainly believe that’s the case."

PM Realty leases the Skymark Tower, Interstate 30 and Cooper Street, and Enterprise Centre, Lamar Boulevard near Collins Street, buildings that have private office balconies commanding top-notch views of the stadium.

"We will certainly price that differently than the other side of the building," Cherry said.

He said the price will be what the market bears.

The North Texas Commercial Association of Realtors hosted an event at Cowboys Stadium to tout development opportunities in Arlington. After stadium tours and lunch, attendees boarded buses to see Huffines Communities’ proposed Viridian Town Center development on north Collins, Lincoln Square shopping center, areas along north Texas 360, downtown Arlington and around the University of Texas at Arlington.

"We’ve had tons of activity" from potential tenants, Cherry said. "Tenants are moving from building to building, and there’s been an influx from outside the market."

That influx is coming from even the international real estate investment community, which has a positive outlook on Arlington as a result of the stadium, said Ken Thurmond, leasing director with Primera Cos.

"When they see it in the news, even in Europe, it’s only enhanced their perception," Thurman said.

BA609 deal

Bell Helicopter is reportedly close to turning over control of the BA609 civil tilt-rotor aircraft program to its Italian partner, AgustaWestland.

Sources close to both Bell and AgustaWestland say that a formal agreement has been reached but that details remain guarded, possibly until Textron prepares its third-quarter earnings report.

Bell spokesman Joe LaMarca said the company would not comment "on speculation and rumors."

The BA609 project was launched more than a decade ago as a joint venture between Bell and Boeing to bring the capabilities of the V-22 Osprey military aircraft to the commercial world. Boeing dropped out of the program, and AgustaWestland paid $100 million in cash and $200 million in research and development commitments to join Bell.

Bell at one point said it had nearly 80 purchase commitments, but the number has shrunk in recent years.

The program was initially a 75-25 venture, with Bell the majority partner, but over the years a succession of Bell executives have cooled on the project because of high development costs and the rising projected price of the aircraft, now put at close to $20 million each, which is expected to dim interest from commercial aircraft customers.

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