No one seems to want to spill the beans about what’s going on with the old Albertson’s at Lemmon and McKinney avenues. After all the buzz about a big new mixed-use project anchored by a Central Market, the property is still just sitting there empty.
This spot is at one of the busiest corners on the edge of Uptown, with a high fence and a worn-out parking lot just begging for something new. A few years back, there was a lot of excitement about a residential tower popping up next to the fancy grocery store. But now it looks like the plan is to simply build a Central Market right where the old Albertson’s was.
Back in February 2022, the Dallas Business Journal had us all excited, reporting that developer KDC was set to start construction in April on a $295 million project. This huge development was supposed to have 1.7 million square feet of space, with three stories of offices and 23 levels of apartments. There was even a plan for a five-story apartment building next door, all anchored by a Central Market and a four-story underground parking garage.
Fast forward two years, and nothing has happened. The project, first announced in 2018, was supposed to include an office tower and a hotel. Later, it was going to be part of Central Market’s parent company HEB’s expansion into North Texas. HEB has opened several stores in the suburbs and has plans for a Central Market in Oak Cliff near the Bishop Arts District, along with some discount stores called Joe V’s Smart Shop.
But when DALTX checked in on the Uptown development, nobody had much to say. KDC isn’t involved anymore and didn’t explain why. The Dallas Central Appraisal District says the land is worth over $21 million and it’s owned by a company called Pan Coastal Management, which shares an address with Southstate Management Corp. Both have almost no online presence and Southstate didn’t comment.
HEB, which leases the property, says they still want to build a store there. “We’re currently looking into ways to build a store on the land where the old Albertson’s was. We hope to have more information to share in the coming months,” an HEB rep said. This hints that there won’t be a big 25-story development but rather just a regular Central Market where Albertson’s used to be.
Over the last couple of years, higher interest rates have made it tough for developers to raise money, which probably slowed or changed the project. High financing costs and stricter loan standards have also been a hurdle.
Interestingly, another project, Uptown Tower on North Central Expressway near the Lemmon property, declared bankruptcy in 2023. However, Dallas’ commercial real estate market is still doing better than many others, thanks to regional population growth and lower land prices.
At Central Expressway and Carroll Avenue, De La Vega Development and StreetLights Residential are working on a 27-acre mixed-use development. And deeper into Uptown, Crescent Real Estate plans to build a 30-story apartment high-rise with about 215 units at the northern edge of The Crescent.
As for the future of Central Market in the neighborhood, it’s still up in the air. We’ll have to wait and see what happens next.
