Bob Young

For the Dallas-Fort Worth commercial retail sector, no matter what the cycle, our industry always plays at the highest level. And although my comments may sound a bit self-serving, the players in our commercial real estate arena add a level of expertise and vibrancy that is truly special.

I’ll cite one example of how leveraging the human capital component not only manifests itself, through the spirit of “coop-etition” (where we compete and cooperate), but raises the bar for a more efficient and powerful marketplace. A recent retail update event put a spotlight on this dynamic. After networking (our industry does this well!), there were two panel discussions. (This is where the self-serving part comes in, because I was one of the panelists!)

The panels included the following professionals who touch the retail sector in similar and different ways: real estate attorney Ron Holmes (Holmes Firm PC); real estate investor Ray Washburne (Charter Holdings); real estate developer Gar Herring (The MGHerring Group); brokerage exec Alan Shor (The Retail Connection); real estate investor Michael Ablon (PegasusAblon); architect Marsha Getto-Aikens (Gensler); real estate broker Larry Leon (Venture Commercial); brokerage manager Jean Smith (UCR); retail investment specialist Jason Vitorino (Marcus & Millichap); and me.

The dialogue was lively, informative and as current as you would expect from these leading retail real estate pros. And although market fragility and the need for caution were addressed, the overwhelming theme held that the needle is pointed in the right direction: toward a growing market.

Knowing full well that location, financing, the bricks-and-sticks and creative merchants are important variables in the equation, it’s good to have very capable and energetic purveyors of dealmaking and value creation in our dynamic DFW marketplace.

Bob Young is managing director of The Weitzman Group. Contact him at byoung@weitzmangroup.com.