A First Look at the New Crescent Fort Worth, and How to Spend a Weekend There

Crescent Real Estate Chairman John Goff shares his vision for the charming new hospitality anchor in Fort Worth's Cultural District—and how he landed the deal to develop it.

For years, Crescent Real Estate Chairman John Goff commuted past a 5-acre plot in the heart of Fort Worth’s affluent Cultural District. Despite a desire to see something be built on the prime plot of land, the local developer—who has owned The Crescent Dallas three different times—never dreamed of developing it himself.

Plans for The Crescent Fort Worth did not manifest until 2020 when Mary Ralph Lowe, CEO of family-owned energy company Maralo, visited Goff in his home for a beer after securing a contract on the land.

“It was a head-scratcher as to why more had not been developed in the area,” Goff says. “There were numerous failed attempts to do a hotel on this land, but they were all just yet another project—frankly ugly, somewhat high-rising, middle-end hotels. None of that product was embraced by the Cultural District. And, architecturally, they were really problematic because all the developers who preceded us wanted to build too high, and they would eclipse the views of the local museums that boast historic architecture across the street.”

Lowe, who happens to be Goff’s neighbor, had yet to close on the purchase when the two business leaders sat down for a drink. Real estate development was not her forte, so while the two bantered, Lowe expressed interest in assigning the contract to Goff once she did ink the paperwork. Crescent would develop the property with Lowe serving as the investor.

The one stipulation Lowe had was that Goff had to open a bar named Ralph’s—after her late father who helped drill more than 500 wells in Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and New Mexico. “That was easy,” Goff says with a laugh. (Ralph’s is the property’s half-private, half-public rooftop bar and lounge; it’s set to open sometime this month.)

I want this development to be the living room of Fort Worth.

John Goff, Chairman, Crescent Real Estate

Today, four years later, the land has blossomed into a mixed-use anchor in the Fort Worth Cultural District. The 200-key hotel has opened to rave reviews and has already set a new benchmark for occupancy in the city.

The 160,000-square-foot office building is completely leased, and the ink just dried for a second adjacent office building due to demand. Tenants range from oil and gas companies and banks to money management firms and family offices. The multifamily property that has 170 units is seeing early success, as well.

“The challenge in office development right now is you’ve got to charge in the $50s per square foot in rent to build a really nice office product that’s in an urban environment with a parking garage,” Goff says. “There were no office buildings in the city that were charging those kinds of rents. So we had to make a big bet that we could attract tenants because of the amenities here.”

The Crescent Fort Worth, which is a district in and of itself, also boasts a 26,000-square-foot Canyon Ranch Wellness Club and, once the development is fully built out, it will be home to up to eight restaurants—including a Duro Hospitality concept that will draw inspiration from iconic polo clubs from around the world.

Additionally, Goff has received approval from the city to assist in redeveloping four city blocks on Camp Bowie Boulevard that stretch from Montgomery Street to University Drive. “It’s going to be a much more walkable area with much better lighting, much better landscaping, a better streetscape, and we’re going to slow the traffic down. We have the design done, and that will get underway very soon,” he says.

But the developer doesn’t plan on stopping in Cowtown. He is adding a residential tower at The Crescent Dallas and is shopping the Crescent Hotel concept in various markets across the country. “We have six new locations that we’re currently working on,” Goff told D CEO. “That’s not to say all those will happen, but we’re working on them.”

Source from: https://www.dmagazine.com/commercial-real-estate/2024/04/the-new-crescent-fort-worth-how-to-spend-a-weekend/