U.S. 290 Corridor Enters Next Growth Phase with Major Residential, Industrial Developments Underway

 

With major residential and commercial developments underway, the US 290 Corridor continues to strengthen its status as the next major growth corridor in Houston. “The availability of large tracts of land, the quality of the local school district, and improved mobility have placed Waller County in the path of growth, not unlike the opportunity we saw years ago along I-10 in The Energy Corridor,” said David S. Wolff, Chairman and President of Wolff Companies. Read more for a summary of recent transactions, commercial development, and demographic trends along the 290 Corridor.

Recent Transactions & Commercial Development

Waller County has established a reputation as a hub for global manufacturing, logistics, and oil & gas service companies, thanks to its favorable business environment, excellent school district and strategic location in west Houston. In the past six months, nine major companies located their projects in the region:

• In late April, H-E-B announced a 5,000-acre distribution campus in Hempstead, and Mustang Cat shared plans for its $30 million headquarters in Waller County.
• In March, Elin Energy opened a 225,000 square-foot solar panel manufacturing facility in south Waller County.
• In February, Coloplast, a Danish-owned medical supply company, announced its newest distribution center in Waller County; Grainger, an industrial supply company, announced plans to open a 1.2 million square-foot distribution center in Hockley; and Lumber 84, building materials supplier, leased an entire a 142,100-square-foot Class A facility at the Barker Cypress Distribution Center.
• In November 2023, Japanese air conditioning and refrigeration manufacturer Daikin leased the entire 500,840-square-foot The Great 290 Distribution Center in Waller, marking an expansion of Daikin’s existing 4.3 million-square-foot manufacturing and distribution facility. Additionally, Trademark acquired 37 acres for a mixed-use town center in Dunham Pointe.
• In October 2023, Amazon signed a long-term lease for 12.7 acres at Riggy’s West 10, a new outdoor truck parking and storage lot on US 290, near Amazon’s existing distribution center in Brookshire.
• In August of 2023, Chevron bought 77 acres for a potential research and development campus in Dunham Point.

H-E-B’s campus first phase is expected to start construction in late 2024. The project is part of a multi-phase plan to develop nearly 500 acres in Waller County, including several distribution facilities. Image: Ryan.

More industrial development is underway, including:

• Prologis Legacy Point, a speculative 537,375-square-foot warehouse by Constellation Real Estate Partners.
• Satsuma Station Industrial Park, a seven-building manufacturing park by United Equities.
• TradePoint 290 Logistics Park, a 173-acre development in Prairie View, just a few miles from Wolff Companies’ Beacon Hill project, where Hines has purchased 80 acres for an industrial project.

Population and Residential Growth

The US 290 Corridor is also experiencing a housing boom, with more than 43,000 homes planned on nearly 23,000 acres, including a 270-acre residential subdivision in Wolff Companies’ Beacon Hill developed by Long Lake.

Jubilee, a 1,622-acre development from Johnson Development, commenced home sales for its first phase of construction in February. Image: Johnson Development.

Over the past decade, Waller County’s population grew by nearly 40 percent to more than 65,000 and is expected to reach 120,000 by 2040 according to the Houston-Galveston Area Council. To meet this need, major developers are investing in the area, including Howard Hughes with Bridgeland; Johnson Development with Jubilee in Hockley; and Hines with its recently announced 1,400-home project in Waller.

Other recently announced housing activity includes:

• Breaking ground in Oakberry Trails by Ryko Development in March
• The first home closing in The Grand Prairie by Ember in March
• Breaking ground on the Asher multi-family development at Towne Lake by Caldwell Cos in February
• The opening of Cadence Creek at Towne Lake, an active senior living community in October of 2023
• Announcement of a new built-to-rent subdivision by Empire Communities in Dellrose
• Announcement of a new single-family community by Ersa Grae Corporation
• Announcement of Colton, a 5,700-acre development that will span Montgomery, Waller, and Grimes counties

Overall, more than a dozen master planned communities are planned or currently underway, providing diverse housing options – including apartment living – with a variety of sizes, styles, price points and amenities to suit all demographics.

 

Education

Waller ISD projects its student population will grow by 65% by 2027. Currently, eight Waller ISD campuses serve nearly 9,500 students, representing a 27 percent increase in enrollment over five years. The student population is projected to more than double by 2029. To meet these demands, the district opened its new Waller High School in 2022, and Phase 2 of the project is well underway. Other recent developments include:

• McReavy Elementary in Bridgeland is underway and expected to open by end of 2024.
• Lowe Elementary in Dellrose is also underway and expected to open by end of 2024.
• Waller ISD purchased land for another elementary school in The Grand Prairie master-planned community in Hockley.
• Another school is planned for the yet-to-be-named Hines master-planned community in Waller.

Cy-Fair ISD also predicts enrollment growth on the west side of the district, driven by growing neighborhoods such as Bridgeland, Marvida, Avalon at Cypress, Dunham Pointe, and Grand Mason. Several charter and private schools are planned or already underway there, including Cypress Christian School in Prairieland Village in Bridgeland, which broke ground this February.

Waller High School offers more than 40 hours of free dual-credit college courses and more than 90 career and technical education (CTE) courses in 22 programs of study during the normal high school schedule all on the same campus. Image: VLK Architects.

Higher education options along the 290 Corridor are also expanding, preparing the future workforce:

• In September 2023, Prairie View A&M University (PVAMU) launched its School of Public and Allied Health, offering degrees in health, public health, and kinesiology, and physical education.
• PVAMU also added new degrees in natural resources
• Blinn College began offering classes in Waller in October 2023, providing greater accessibility for college students in the region.
• In 2023, Lone Star College celebrated the 20^th anniversary of its CyFair campus, with enrollment of 23,000 in 2023, a 230 percent increase compared to 2013.

Healthcare

Healthcare providers are also preparing for the 290 Corridor’s growing population.

• Last September, Kelsey Seybold announced expansion of its Cypress Clinic, to be renamed Northwest Campus. In addition to a new 120,000-square-foot building, expected to open in Fall 2024, the existing facility will be renovated.
• Additionally, in January 2023, Kelsey Seybold opened its second clinic along US 290 in Fairfield.
• HCA Houston Healthcare Northwest is expanding its surgical and women’s services spaces, with completion expected later this year.
• As a part of a $71.8 million expansion project, Memorial Hermann Cypress Hospital opened a new 40-bed medical and surgical unit in August 2023. The second medical plaza, a parking garage and the $8 million Memorial Hermann Sports Park are expected to open later this year.
• Houston Methodist new Cypress Hospital is under construction and will consist of a seven-story hospital and two six-story medical office buildings to be completed in early 2025.

The construction for the new Houston Methodist Cypress Hospital is expected to be completed in the beginning of Q1 of 2025. One office building will contain a cancer center with a linear accelerator, a breast center, and infusion and pharmacy areas; the other will feature an orthopedics and sports medicine center and clinics. Image: Houston Methodist

Infrastructure Improvements Serve the Growing Workforce

The completion of the Grand Parkway’s Segment E connecting I-10 to U.S. 290 made Waller more attractive to the future workforce. Additional improvements, announced this March and expected to start in mid-2026, will include widening of Segment E from four to six lanes to address the growth happening along the 290 Corridor.

The long-awaited completion of US 290 construction reduced commute times and opened the area for development, including residential, industrial and distribution uses. According to the most recent TxDOT traffic counts, U.S. 290 at Beacon Hill saw more than 58,000 vehicles daily in 2022, a 35 percent increase from 2021. Wolff Companies and the Texas Department of Transportation are also advancing plans to create significant access improvements to U.S. 290, including:

• an off-ramp for a new 290 interchange, named Beacon Hill Boulevard, located west of FM 362;
• a mile-long frontage road, connecting Beacon Hill Boulevard to James R. Muse Parkway;
• an auxiliary lane from the entrance ramp from FM 362 to the Beacon Hill exit; and
• a U-turn under U.S. 290 at James R. Muse Parkway to aid traffic flow from Beacon Hill toward Houston.

The interchange project is funded through a public-private partnership between Wolff Companies, TXDOT, Waller County, and the Beacon Hill Municipal Utility District (Waller County MUD #33), with Wolff Companies providing much of the capital as well as the right-of-way for the project.

Additionally, Waller County’s $280 million mobility bond voters passed in November 2023 will support transportation improvements in the southern Waller area for both commercial and residential users.

Legacy of Development along Emerging Corridors

Wolff Companies has been investing in Waller County since 2006, first with Liendo Park, now home to the Prairie View Cricket Complex, and most recently with our 587-acre mixed-use community, Beacon Hill.

Beacon Hill continues Wolff Companies’ long history of creating mixed-used developments along emerging freeway corridors, master-planned with development, architectural and landscaping guidelines, and deed restrictions in place to ensure long-term quality and value.

Located directly along the newly reconstructed U.S. 290, within minutes of the Grand Parkway, Prairie View A&M University and Daikin Technology Park, Beacon Hill provides exceptional visibility as well as connectivity to Houston, Brenham, College Station and Austin, placing the master-planned development firmly in the path of growth – and on the radars of  families looking for homes and employers looking for high-opportunity locations and employees for their businesses.

 Beacon Hill offers shovel-ready sites with storm water detention and drainage, trunk water lines, trunk sanitary sewer and lift station as well as electrical lines and residential streets already in place, representing an investment in the property approaching $20 million and growing.

With 587 acres along the north side of U.S. 290, between FM 362 and James R. Muse Parkway and almost 8,200 feet of freeway frontage, the development will feature a business park on the 323 acres abutting the freeway, with potential uses ranging from light industrial and office to retail, multifamily and hospitality. Recently completed Beacon Hill Boulevard, the community’s main thoroughfare, connects Highway U.S. 290 and Owens Road on the northern side of the property. These infrastructure improvements represent an investment to date near $29 million in the property.

The growing interest of many residential developers in Waller County is an indicator that Beacon Hill was the right investment for the transformation of the 290 corridor that now is well underway.

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