ROSENBERG, Texas – (Realty News Report) – The Richmond–Rosenberg area in Fort Bend County is emerging as a major growth corridor in Houston’s southwestern suburbs.
Southwest Houston has long been a focal point for development. As Sugar Land approaches buildout, new residential and industrial activity is pushing farther southwest into the Rosenberg–Richmond market. In the past year both cities have landed significant economic development projects: Rosenberg will soon host Dollar Tree’s 1 million-square-foot distribution center, while less than four miles away in Richmond, Trammell Crow Company is developing an 850,000-square-foot e-commerce fulfillment center for Amazon.
These large-scale logistics projects reinforce momentum for Houston-based NewQuest Properties, the developer behind Brazos Town Center—one of the largest retail master-planned developments of its kind in Texas.
Situated along Interstate 69 in Rosenberg, Brazos Town Center is currently 98 percent leased.
South of the Brazos River, Brazos Town Center occupies a 550-acre master-planned site approximately eight miles south of Sugar Land and 25 miles southwest of downtown Houston. NewQuest broke ground on the two-phase project 14 years ago, and the development has steadily grown into a dominant retail node for the region.
“Brazos Town Center has by far exceeded our expectations,” said Bob Conwell, senior vice president of NewQuest. “It’s a top-performing location in Texas for many of our tenants.”
Anchoring the center is one of the largest Kroger supermarkets in Texas. That 123,000-square-foot store consistently ranks among the top 5 percent of Kroger’s 209 Texas locations—underscoring the site’s strong consumer draw and the effectiveness of NewQuest’s planning.
Geography and trade patterns amplify Brazos Town Center’s market reach. The center’s trade area serves roughly 272,000 residents and stretches nearly 40 miles to the west, about 25 miles to the south and at least 15 miles to the north. Several residential communities are within close proximity, including Del Webb’s Sweetgrass active-adult community and numerous master-planned neighborhoods accessible via the Grand Parkway (Highway 99).
NewQuest’s development accounts for roughly half of Rosenberg’s approximately 4 million square feet of retail space, making Brazos Town Center a central component of the city’s retail economy.
“Brazos Town Center isn’t built out. It is continuing to evolve,” Conwell said. “We will keep pursuing prospective tenants—and they continue to seek us out—although some concepts can’t be accommodated due to exclusive use restrictions.”
The property’s strong leasing velocity is evident in recent deals. NewQuest quickly filled former space by securing Frost Bank and America’s Best as new tenants at Brazos Town Center. Frost Bank leased 4,147 square feet and America’s Best leased 2,988 square feet, with NewQuest reconfiguring recently vacated class-A space to accommodate both tenants.
“When we lose a tenant, we backfill it very quickly,” Conwell noted. “The center features an impressive mix of national, regional and local credit tenants.”
America’s Best plans to begin its interior build-out immediately, targeting an opening by the end of summer. Frost Bank is scheduled to open later in 2020.
Leasing for Brazos Town Center is handled by Bob Conwell and Austen Baldridge, vice president of NewQuest. Lilly Golden of Evergreen Commercial Realty represented America’s Best, and Scott Gardner of Streetwise Retail Advisors served as tenant representative for Frost Bank.
June 29, 2020 Realty News Report Copyright 2020
Photo: Brazos Town Center is a NewQuest Properties development in Rosenberg, southwest of Houston.