July 13, 2006
Thos. S. Byrne, Ltd., Signs First Letter of Intent in Museum Place Development
Fort Worth, Texas – The Museum Place Development Group (MPDG) announced today that a letter of intent has been executed by Thos. S. Byrne, Ltd. (Byrne) for the first office lease in the development. The Fort Worth-based company will also serve as the general contractor for the new building it will be occupying and will be an equity owner in this building.
Byrne will relocate its office to approximately 20,000 square-foot of office space in a building to be constructed at the corner of Bailey Avenue and 7th Street. The 180,300 square-foot facility will include office space, retail and condominiums. Groundbreaking is expected to begin in January 2007 and construction is expected to take 14-15 months.
“To have such a well-respected local company as Thos. S. Byrne to sign the first letter of intent is a tremendous boost to the Museum Place development,” said Richard F. Garvey, Museum Place Development Group co-developer and president. “We look forward to not only having Byrne as our first tenant, but working with them as a partner on the construction of this building.”
“Because of our successful growth in the past decade, the timing was perfect to find a new location,” said John Avila, Jr., president and CEO of Byrne. “We have been working for more than two years to find a development partner with property in a location we would prefer. Our partnership with Museum Place is a great match.”
Avila added that Byrne was once headquartered off of Bailey Avenue, before moving to its current location on Summit Avenue.
Founded in 1923 by Thomas Sneed Byrne, the company has been involved in many of the high profile construction and development projects in Fort Worth, including the original Montgomery Ward building and the recent renovation of the Montgomery Ward building into Montgomery Plaza, the Pier 1 headquarters and the Amon Carter and Kimbell Art Museums in the cultural district.
When complete, Museum Place will be a pedestrian-friendly urban development, with public plazas, open spaces, abundant on-street parking and wide sidewalks lined with trees. Multiple restaurants, a boutique hotel and small cinema will help generate a lively street scene. Museum Place Development, Group, Ltd., developer of the project, is an affiliate of JaGee Holdings, LLP, a Fort Worth company that owns and manages more than one million square feet of retail and industrial real estate. Tony Landrum, president of TLCurban, a Fort Worth-based corporate and commercial real estate investment firm, is co-developer of the project.