Partners to open Kendall Yards project

Black Rock Development is partnering with an affiliate of The Staubach Co. to develop the first 20 acres of Kendall Yards.

The affiliate, Cypress Equities, specializes in retail development, portfolio acquisitions, build-to-suits and other development for mixed-use projects, a joint news release said.

Tom Reese, project manager for Kendall Yards, said the two companies will share ownership and expenses for developing the first phase of the 80-acre project, located north of downtown Spokane.

Several retailers have already expressed interest in locating there, he said, and Cypress Equities has connections to national companies that could benefit the project.

“They have those relationships with key major retailers around the country,” Reese said.

According to its Web site, The Staubach Co., based in Dallas, is a real estate advisory firm that was founded by former football star Roger Staubach. The company represents users of office industrial and retail space and its clients include IKEA, Sears and Target, as well as Barnes & Noble, Coldwater Creek, Ethan Allen, Old Navy and others.

Representatives of Cypress Equities were traveling and unavailable to comment on the partnership.

Reese expects the project to break ground next spring. “We have to go through all the design and civil engineering,” he said.

The two companies will collaborate on an initial phase of Kendall Yards that incorporates about 500 residential units in the form of townhouses, condominiums and apartments, the news release said. There also will be about 500,000 square feet of non-residential space on a 20-acre site between Monroe and Maple streets, it said.

Kendall Yards is slated for up to 2,600 residences and up to one million square feet of commercial space.

A public hearing before a hearing examiner is scheduled for Aug. 3 at City Hall.