THE ALLMANAC

AT&T Headquarters in Plano will have mid-rise, tower

DFW:  AT&T has given the public a glimpse of its new corporate headquarters that will include a mid-rise building, with a needle-like tower that it hopes will be its signature landmark in Plano. The renderings were shared by the company’s CEO on his LinkedIn page. The telecom titan announced earlier this year that it was moving its headquarters from downtown Dallas to the former Electronic Data Systems site off Legacy Drive in Plano. The preliminary plans call for more than 2 million square feet of space and a building height of eight stories. The company will be seeking to rezone a portion of the site. The tower, with an AT&T globe on top, will be capped at around 280 feet. AT&T must spend $1.35 billion to build at least 2 million square feet of space, create 10,000 full-time jobs, and occupy the site for 25 years in order to receive $20 million in tax incentives. 

U.S.: More than a million housing units were constructed across the U.S. last year, but that did little to erase the housing shortage facing the country. Reports indicate that more than 1 million single-family homes and nearly 600,000 apartments were constructed last year. But the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis says in a new report that the country has a 3 million-to-5-million-unit deficit dating back to the Great Recession of 2008. High costs for labor, land and materials, along with zoning challenges and building permit obstacles are among the culprits for nationwide the shortage. The St. Louis Fed also noted that fewer people are living under one household, requiring more housing units. Adding to the shortage and affordability is the soaring median home prices, which the St. Louis Fed said have shot up more than 200% since the start of the new millennium. 

DFW: H-E-B’s footprint across Dallas is increasing. The San Antonio grocer has announced plans for its long-rumored-awaited Central Market location in Uptown, on the former Albertson’s site at McKinney and Lemmon that has sat empty for a decade. City officials cleared the company’s plans in late April. It will include a total of 59,500 square feet to renovate and expand the current structure to include a restaurant, patio, plus an enclosed, two-story, 80,000-square-foot parking garage. The specialty grocer had wanted to partner with a developer for a mixed-use high-rise project, but the plans never materialized. It has been working with city officials and community groups on its site plans. A construction start date has yet to be announced. Central Market already operates six stores across the Metroplex. Its parent company, H-E-B, has over 12 stores in North Texas and recently was approved for its first Dallas store at Interstate 635 and Hillcrest Avenue in North Dallas.

U.S.: Move over millennials, roommates are trending older. Spareroom.com says that the high cost of housing across the country has hit many single baby boomers, who are now looking for roommates. Over the past decade, the number of single adults 65 and older looking for a roommate has tripled to just under 5%. The digital platform targeting the shared housing industry says the increase is the biggest of any age group. It said that younger people are staying at home longer while older single people are seeking roommates because of the high cost of affording their own homes or renting by themselves. The percentage of millennials having roommates has dropped from more than 40% to about 30%. 

LALALAND: Kindness or good riddance? Ben Affleck has given his ex-wife Jennifer Lopez his portion of a $60 million mansion that has been on the market since their split two years ago. Free. No strings attached, apparently. The couple married in July 2022 and in 2023 paid $60.85 million for the 38,000-square-foot, 12-bedroom, 24-bath Beverly Hills estate. But the couple split in 2024. Their divorce was finalized in January 2025. The house has been sitting empty for the past year, on and off the market because of no interest, as the couple moved on to other properties. Lopez apparently thought the mansion was too big and Affleck never really cared for the mansion. 

COPYRIGHT © 2024. Allie Beth Allman & Associates, a HomeServices of America, Inc. company. All Rights Reserved.

THE ALLMANAC