The local technology sector has slowly but surely regained its footing after the knockout blow of the bust that hit earlier this decade. The arrival of Research in Motion will only help in that regard.
The Canadian maker of the popular BlackBerry wireless device chose Riverside Commons in Irving for its first-ever U.S. headquarters, bringing with it the promise of 1,000 new hires over the next few years.
The need for all those new workers was the key reason RIM wound up in Irving rather than a half-dozen other cities that were wooing it.
Sure, there were all the usual factors that help sell the Metroplex, such as the Central time zone, the ease of getting anywhere in the U.S. and Latin America, and the relatively low cost of living and commercial real estate space. But RIM’s need to bring aboard the right people was so great that the company did not receive, or ask for, any financial incentives from Irving.
“They think this is a deep, talented labor market that they are very comfortable tapping into,” says Pat O’Keefe, a senior vice president at CB Richard Ellis who represented RIM. “At the end of the day, it had more to do with hiring than anything.”
The expected growth in local staffing is tied to the phenomenal growth of the BlackBerry, which combines a computer and a phone in one handy wireless device. RIM has around 12 million BlackBerry subscribers, up from a million in early 2004, according to the company.
The company already had a small presence in Irving before the December 17 announcement about the U.S. headquarters, with a few dozen people and around 20,000 square feet of real estate space.
It chose to stay in Irving partly because it was comfortable with the location, and partly because the central Irving locale could draw workers living on both sides of Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, O’Keefe says.
Proximity to the airport itself, for business travel purposes, also was important. For its new home, RIM chose Riverside Commons, a six-building, 460,000-square-foot complex on Riverside Drive in Irving. To start, the company will take 109,500 square feet, giving it all of the building No. 6 and most of building No. 5.
Critical to the deal was Riverside Commons’ ability to allow RIM to expand as its business dictates.
“Because there was some vacancy in that piece of real estate, it was a positive as far as RIM was concerned – the ability to lease space and the ability to grow into a larger corporate campus over time,” says John Bonnot, vice president of economic development at the Greater Irving-Las Colinas Chamber of Commerce.
Renovations Key
In addition, O’Keefe says, RIM liked the fact that the owner of the property, Dallas-based Westmount Realty Capital, recently did some renovations to bring the facility “up to contemporary standards.” Built in 1986, Riverside Commons features a fitness center, 24-hour security and a conference center, among other amenities. An upscale deli can cater events. Chris Taylor, a principal at CAPSTAR Commercial Real Estate Services, says Westmount spent a little more than $3 million on the improvements, which were completed in May 2007. Taylor and CAPSTAR colleague Rodney Helm represented Westmount in the lease to RIM.
Inside the Deal
THE DEAL: 109,500-square-foot lease for Research in Motion’s U.S. headquarters.
THE IMPACT: The lease brings a major U.S. headquarters to the Metroplex. The company plans to hire around 1,000 people during the next few years. What’s more, RIM’s advent has the potential to create spinoff business for a host of vendors, and could help spur entrepreneurial innovation locally.
KEY PLAYERS: Chris Taylor and Rodney Helm, CAPSTAR Commercial Real Estate Services; Pat O’Keefe, CB Richard Ellis Inc.; John Bonnot, Greater Irving-Las Colinas Chamber of Commerce.
View All