Richardson Approves 5,100 Apartments at Robert Sarver’s CityLine

Brokers in Richardson should expect to get busy with everything from chain stores to mom-and-pops if the old adage that “retail follows roofs” holds true in the fast-growing DFW suburb.

But first, multifamily development.

The Richardson City Council counted on that formula when it approved a request for a 30 percent boost in the number of apartments at the mixed-use CityLine East development, for a total of 5,100. The 62.5 acre development is owned by an entity of Robert Sarver and part of the larger CityLine campus, developed by Dallas-based KDC.

Tucson, Arizona-based developer Robert Sarver, who previously owned the NBA’s Phoenix Suns and WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury, paid $580 for City Line East through his 3Edgewood LLC last year.

The Richardson City Council overrode its planning commission, voting unanimously to approve the request this week, the Dallas Business Journal reported, citing initial coverage by Community Impact.

Some members of the Richardson City Plan Commission had called into question the overall composition of the project, making requests for “more creative retail or entertainment uses.”

KDC and 3Edgewood representatives argued that retail in general is necessary to maintain positive momentum for the project, where nearly half of the 230,000 square feet of retail space remains empty, with 2.5 million square feet of office in four buildings leased to insurer State Farm and nearly 4,000 residential units.

Richardson City Manager Don Magner weighed in on the side of the developer and landlord.

“What we hear often is the next corporate tenant we recruit there wants more [assurance] around what CityLine will be and that it will be completed,” Magner said. “One of the pros of the plan that’s before you tonight is that it creates a path forward that’s based in market reality.”

The addition of the 5,100 or so apartments approved by the Richardson City Council are expected to be developed over the next eight years.