What Texas is doing to upgrade as it ranked No.1 fastest-growing state in 2022 with no signs of slowing
With Texas ending last year as the fastest-growing state in the nation, it continues to upgrade and expand in nearly every sector as it attracts new businesses and residents. Read about how airports in Dallas are changing the travel experience for their record-number of passengers, which new restaurants and companies are flooding into DFW as industry diversity keeps growing, and how the state is planning to upgrade parts of its infrastructure to support the steady stream of new residents.
Dallas airports upping their game as population growth continues to explode
In 2022, Texas became the fastest-growing state in the nation, joining California with a population of over 30 million people. Davie Nguyen with Dallas Business Journal reported that Texas also had three of the top 10 U.S. counties with the largest population gains by percent growth from 2021 to 2022. Kaufman County ranked No. 2 with 8.9% population growth to 172,366 people, Rockwall ranked No. 6 with 5.7% growth to 123,208 people, and Parker ranked No.8 with 5.6% growth to 165,834 people.
Alexandra Skores with Dallas News shared that, according to Airports Council International, DFW International Airport is the second busiest airport in the world with 73.36 million passengers in 2022. Denver Airport trailed behind at 69.2 million passengers, while Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport scored first place with 93.6 million passengers. Earlier this year, DFW was also named the world’s best large airport by the Council, serving over 40 million passengers a year and being recognized for top-tier customer service.
“DFW is proud to be recognized as the world’s second busiest airport for the second year in a row,” said Francisco Rodriguez, a spokesperson for DFW Airport. “Supporting this growth through opening new gates in Terminal C that offer the latest in customer amenities and expanding our network to provide customers with more choices, we make every decision with our customers in mind.”
Why the tech industry in Dallas is booming as tech companies continue to expand
Alexa Reed with Dallas Business Journal reported that Dallas added over 14,000 tech jobs last year, raising its net technology employment by 4.4%, according to a report by CompTIA. Dallas secured the No. 2 spot in the nation for increase in technology jobs with Austin coming in at No. 5 with 10,795 jobs. Overall, Texas ranked No. 1 in the country for highest net technology job gains.
Dallas also ranked No. 6 nationally for total number of tech-related jobs at 329,300. The CompTIA report predicts a 3.8% increase in net tech employment this year, which would add about 12,680 jobs.
Tim Herbert, Chief Research Officer for CompTIA, said, “In a year of even more uncertainty than usual, the tech labor market routinely defied expectations. The data continues to confirm the degree to which technology underpins so many facets of business activity across the economy and the breadth of employers reliant on technical and digital skills.”
The city of Fort Worth is considering a proposal by Sinclair Digital Services Inc. to establish a new corporate R&D and technology center in downtown Fort Worth. R&D costs would be expected to reach about $87 million over 10 years, while the city would provide grants capped at $10 million. The company is a venture-backed smart buildings technology company based in downtown Fort Worth that is currently aiming to pursue development of new technologies and applications.
The facility would feature a new R&D lab, technology demonstration room, product mock-up room and Energy Storage Systems demonstration site. The project is expected to cost about $20 million in equipment and software installations with an additional $850,000 in facilities improvements. In addition, it is estimated to create 63 new jobs over a five-year period with average annual wages starting at $100,000.
Businesses continue to join The Colony as it becomes a hotspot for industry diversity
Elm Cos., a utility services and equipment firm, is constructing a 125,000-SF headquarters and manufacturing facility for its microgrid and solar divisions in the Live Oak Logistics Park. Based in Illinois, the company provides systems that help capture and store energy for commercial and industrial use. Some of their clients include the U.S. military, utility companies, and large enterprises. According to Steve Brown with Dallas News, the facility is set to open later this year and will support about 100 employees.
The Colony Mayor Richard Boyer said, “The work of Elm’s engineers and technicians are vital to energy resilience and cost savings for operations across multiple applications. We are very proud to welcome them to The Colony, and we look forward to their future expansion and ongoing innovation.”
PopStroke, a bar and restaurant chain with putting courses designed and led by Tiger Woods, is opening its second Texas location at the Grandscape in The Colony. Alexa Reed with Dallas Business Journal shared that construction is slated to begin in June to the 13,000-SF space with estimated costs of $5.2 million. It is planned to feature 37 outdoor mini-golf holes, an outdoor playground area, and food and drink service.
Its first Texas location was secured last year in Katy, featuring a 20,000-SF venue space with a full-service restaurant, four bars, and an ice cream parlor as well as two 18-hole putting courses. PopStroke’s Florida locations include Fort Myers, Sarasota, Port Saint Lucie, Orlando and Tampa. It currently has one Arizona location in Glendale with another expected to come soon to Scottsdale.
EOS Fitness buys out Houston Texans’ gym chain to expand its presence in Texas
The fast-growing fitness chain, EOS Fitness, recently acquired all five locations of the Texans Fit gym chain from the Houston Texans and fitness company M6 Football. According to Florian Martin with Dallas Business Journal, the acquisition is part of a larger expansion by EOS to open more than 50 new gyms in Greater Houston and DFW over the next five years. In anticipation of this growth, the company moved its headquarters from Phoenix to Dallas last spring, according to CEO Rich Drengberg.
Drenberg said in a statement, “Texans Fit has instilled a culture of health and fitness in the Houston area and we look forward to carrying that on with a new focus on offering a premium fitness experience that’s both affordable and accessible to all.”
The location on Allen Parkway, at 34,000 square feet, is planned to feature a recovery lounge with infrared sauna pods, Hyperice recovery products, Cryobuilt cryotherapy, as well as an outdoor training turf and weight room with the same Olympic platforms and exercise equipment used by the Houston Texans.
The new acquisition now brings EOS Fitness to 75 total locations in Texas, Arizona, Florida, Nevada, Southern California, and Utah.
New restaurants to look forward to in Texas
North Frisco recently became home to the newest location of the Velvet Taco, a fast-casual taco shop based in Dallas. According to Alexa Reed with Dallas Business Journal, the new location features a to-go and pick-up window called the Taco Lane that is also featured at the locations in Grapevine and Rockwall.
President and CEO, Clay Dover, said, “We are extremely excited to bring Velvet Taco to Frisco. We have been hearing requests from guests to build a Velvet Taco in Frisco for several years, and the city has seen rapid and diverse population growth, so we know they are in need of amazing tacos.”
Established in 2011, the Velvet Taco now has 13 locations in DFW, with plans to open more in Waco, Allen, and North Fort Worth this year. Other locations across the country include Atlanta, Austin, Chicago, and Houston.
Kimbal Musk, brother of aerospace billionaire Elon Musk, is opening the fourth location of his restaurant, The Kitchen, in Austin. Set to open next year, the American-style bistro was founded in 2004 in Boulder, Colorado according to Sahar Chmais with Dallas Business Journal. Musk aims to have The Kitchen be an alternative to white-table-cloth steakhouses where business and government communities can enjoy high-end lunch meetings and happy hours in a community setting.
The Kitchen is located in the 66-story skyscraper at Sixth and Guadalupe—Austin’s tallest tower—on the ground floor with 8,000 square feet of space. The restaurant will also feature an additional 6,000-SF loft space for private meetings and a cocktail lounge called The Kitchen Upstairs. It will serve American cuisine inspired by Japanese, Peruvian, and North African influences, as well as a curated wine list from France, California, and elsewhere around the world. Overall, the restaurant is expected to support about 200 full- and part-time workers.
“The Kitchen is not a restaurant group that is really out to expand,” said Musk. “We’re more about building restaurants for the communities that we love and want to connect with. And so, Austin has become a wonderful second home for me after Tesla Motors moved to Austin.”
New public projects that will benefit communities across Texas
Mike Christensen with Dallas Business Journal reported that the Texas Legislature is considering three bills that will expand broadband internet access across Texas. House Bill 9 would establish the Texas Infrastructure Fund which would be responsible for distributing $5 billion in state funding slated for this project; House Joint Resolution 125 would dedicate those state dollars to funding this project; and House Bill 2662 would ensure that an accurate map of the state’s broadband infrastructure is maintained by the state comptroller’s office while connecting local communities with grant funding.
If passed and approved by voters, the plan could help increase reliable internet access to the state’s urban and rural areas as well as provide work for communications service providers and other associated professions. TXP estimates that basic increases in service would create 75,000 new permanent jobs, generate $9 billion in economic activity for the state, and $1.4 billion in tax revenue.
A new full-service Tom Thumb grocery store has been approved by the Dallas City Council to be developed in The Shops at RedBird. Dallas City News wrote that the new store would sit on 5 acres and 50,000 square feet of space, offering a pharmacy, various fresh food departments like deli and bakery, and a delivery/store pick up option using the DriveUp & Go™ service. Owned by Albertson’s Companies, the City Council has slated up to $5.8 million in conditional grants as part of the grocery store’s economic development incentive package.
“This project meets the priorities outlined in the City’s recently approved Economic Development Policy by bringing a needed service to this target area, which also happens to be a food desert,” said Robin Bentley, Director of Economic Development. “We are thankful to Tom Thumb for their partnership and look forward to working with them to bring this grocery store to RedBird.”
Dallas Business Journal reported that DFW will soon be home to new high-tech gondolas as the Regional Transportation Council for North Texas recently invited cities in the metroplex to choose the most congested areas in which to build them. The gondolas, developed by Google and owned by Swyft Cities, are designed to be an alternative form of autonomous transportation that carry passengers along dedicated cables over the city. The vehicles are self-propelled with advanced guidance systems which make for a faster, more efficient trip while transporting passengers at a lower cost and with fewer carbon emissions than traditional forms of public transit.
Swyft Cities says that the projects can reduce infrastructure costs by as much as 20 times because they use less material and daily energy to be developed and run. Gondola stations are about the size of a bus stop but can be built on the ground, above the ground, or adjacent to a taller building, while cabins wait for passengers to board and then depart automatically. Overall, the gondolas are expected to help reduce congestion in daily transit and reduce development costs in certain areas for surrounding industries and businesses.
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