Foundry Industrial Starts Office Redevelopment with Incentive

Foundry Commercial is moving forward with an office-to-industrial redevelopment in West Plano with the help of $750,000 in public funding.

The Orlando based developer, headed by CEO Paul Ellis, is replacing the 40-year-old office building at 2700 West Plano Parkway with two industrial buildings spanning 333,000 square feet, the Dallas Business Journal reported. Georgia-based construction firm Conlan Company began demolition recently.

The redevelopment, called Plano Midpoint, is expected to be completed by early 2026. Dallas-based GSR Andrade Architects is designing the project. Construction costs are estimated at $10.6 million for the first building, measuring 227,000 square feet ($47 per square foot), and $5.3 million for the second, which will be 96,000 square feet ($55 per square foot).

Foundry acquired the site and the adjacent 22 acres earlier this month, in a deal brokered by the firm’s own Randy Blankenship. The seller, who wasn’t identified, was represented by Sarah Kennington, Ruth Griggs and Bryce Jackson of Thirty-Four Commercial.

Plano City Council approved the $750,000 incentives this summer, which will assist with demolition. The redevelopment comes in response to the increasing demand for industrial space in North Texas, particularly as aging office properties become less desirable.

Zoning for light industrial is rare, said Jim Traynor, principal of development and investments for Foundry in Dallas.

With 9.8 percent vacancy in the third quarter, the region’s light industrial space continues to be in high demand. Conversely, office vacancies have risen, reaching 26.7 percent during the quarter, according to CBRE.

Foundry is also working on a similar redevelopment in Irving, where a 287,000-square-foot office building at 4000 Horizon Way will be demolished to make way for 337,000 square feet of warehouse space.

Founded in 2007, Foundry manages more than 72 million square feet across the Sun Belt, spanning multiple asset classes, including industrial, office, and multifamily properties.

— Andrew Terrell