McAllen, Simply The Place to Be

Lush tropical landscapes sway gently in warm coastal breezes. Bright sunshine frames year-round activities like golf and bird watching. But McAllen, Texas, nestled in deep South Texas, is more than just another beautiful destination. Innovative business and investment opportunities, a rapidly expanding medical education and research industry, and premier luxury retail locations pair with a constant flow of visitors from throughout the region, Mexico and the United States spurring residential and commercial development. Click to read more at www.rednews.com.

Retail Trends to Watch in 2019

2018 saw several retailers declare bankruptcy. However, many analysts predict the number of bankruptcies may ease up in the year ahead. “They will slow if for no other reason than a lot of the most troubled retailers have already filed bankruptcy like Toys R Us, Bon-Ton, and of course Sears,” Philip Emma, a senior retail analyst with Debtwire, told Retail Dive in an email. “That said, there are a lot of variables that are new to the equation that will continue to challenge those retailers who were already facing challenges.” Click to read more at www.rednews.com.

Houston Retail Revolution

Charles Chapman, owner of Corinthian Contracting, a commercial general contracting company, logged years working with and learning from other
commercial general contractors in Houston before deciding to set off on his own. He never could have predicted what would mark the start of his path.
“It was actually the day after Hurricane Ike,” he remembers. “I jumped in, doing repair work on retail buildings because of all the storm damage.” Click to read more at www.rednews.com.

Cedar Hill, One of The Best Walkable Cities in Texas, is About to Get Better

Cedar Hill is widely known for having some of the best hiking in Dallas, and that tie to nature and walking is also evident in the City Center Development Plan. New enhancements to the City of Cedar Hill are on the way, and they are designed with businesses, residents and consumers in mind. The next phase of development for the city focuses on improving the accessibility and walkability of each of the three distinctive zones within the City Center area including historic downtown. These improvements are designed to make the city easier to explore, more convenient to shoppers and employers and to build upon an already thriving and unique downtown area. As one of the best suburbs in Dallas, the City of Cedar Hill already draws new ar-rivals from all over the state; the latest enhancements make it easier than ever to enjoy all the city has to offer. Click to read more at www.rednews.com.

Owning an Opportunity

At a groundbreaking in Arizona earlier this year, Nancy Wakefield says she got to see firsthand the manifestation of the benefits of the new Opportunity Zone provision. As tax senior director at RSM US, she’s familiar with interpreting new tax law, but §§ 1400Z of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act offered something new. It created the Qualified Opportunity Zone (QOZ) program. “If this code section works the way it’s supposed to, it should be a win-win for an investor and communities,” Wakefield says. “The purpose is to channel private-sector dollars into distressed communities, where 31 million Americans live.” Read more at www.rednews.com.

Raining Results

Inside the Observation and Response Center at WaterLogic’s Houston headquarters, John O’Donnell is focused on the computer screen in front of him. The company’s vice president of technology is setting up a new irrigation controller that was just installed the previous day at Sienna Plantation. Before it comes online, O’Donnell first has to program its surroundings, which are laid out in a multi-page document. “When we install the controller, we go through a station-by-station evaluation to tell us exactly what is out there. For example, we note what the slope is, whether there are flowers or turf,” O’Donnell explains. “It’s pretty in-depth.” Most of the properties where WaterLogic operates have multiple controllers, so they’re organized by program. Click to read more at www.rednews.com.