Texas Wesleyan University Launches Multifaceted Project

DALLAS—Student housing developer Panteras Development Partners and owner-operator Miyama USA Texas have entered into a long-term ground lease with Texas Wesleyan University/TXWES to launch a new project for the university. Located at 3228 E. Rosedale, The Rosedale will feature one- and two-bedroom apartments less than a minute away from the center of campus.

Equity for the 56-unit 101-bed community has been provided by Miyama USA Texas. Miyama USA Texas and Panteras worked closely with the university’s division of student affairs and received input from current TXWES graduate and undergraduate students to design a project that will benefit the neighborhood and the campus.

“We are extremely pleased to partner with Miyama Texas USA and Panteras Development in providing our students with such a unique living experience,” said Fred Slabach, president of Texas Wesleyan University. “The welcoming, sophisticated environment of the student housing in a location that allows students to be fully integrated with the campus community, will raise the bar for student living at Texas Wesleyan while fulfilling our strategic vision by enriching our students’ campus experience.”

The community consists of a single building with an exterior design incorporating elements consistent with other on-campus buildings, 101 secure gated parking spaces and three floors of residential space. Amenities will include student lounges with large-screen televisions and dedicated study areas.

The area’s new look will be reminiscent of a college town with turn-of-the-century accents. Kiosks that document the history of Polytechnic Heights will also be built.

“The key point is this adds an important student residential component to a major redevelopment of a neighborhood and will transform the entryway to the university,” a project spokesperson tells GlobeSt.com.

Indeed, the centerpiece of the project will be a $1.3 million entryway for the school that will include a clock tower and horseshoe-shaped parking, GlobeSt.com learns. That part of campus, at East Rosedale Street and Vaughn Boulevard, is now closed to traffic by a decorative iron fence.

While the entryway may be the centerpiece of the Rosedale Renaissance project, it is Texas Wesleyan’s plans to build a $3 million conference center that has captured the attention of the Central Texas Conference, as this will serve as the new home for the Central Texas Conference Service Center.

The 15,000-square-foot conference center planned for Texas Wesleyan will sit on the south side of East Rosedale. While it will be used primarily by the Central Texas Conference, which will lease the facility, pre-ministerial students will prepare for seminary studies there, officials said.

“We took great care to design plans for a development that is a good fit for the neighborhood and for the university,” said Alex Bryant, co-founder and managing partner of Panteras Development Partners. “Our team’s experience and close interaction with Texas Wesleyan culminated in the unique plan for this challenging development site.”

Leading the development efforts for Panteras Development Partners along with Bryant is Jake Proctor, both cofounders of the firm. Overseeing funding and management of the community are Takeharu Miyama, chairman and CEO, and Sawako Miyama, president and COO of Miyama USA Texas. The architect is Steven Halliday, Partner with 97w.

“Based on our past on-campus development experience at the University of North Texas and active student housing portfolio at Texas Christian University, this project is a perfect fit for Miyama USA Texas to leverage our boots-on-the-ground management team while simultaneously aligning with our mission to provide first-class housing to higher education students across North Texas,” said Sawako Miyama.

Each apartment will have an option to come fully furnished along with in-unit washers and dryers, cable and high-speed Internet.

“We are thrilled to be part of Texas Wesleyan’s long-term vision for growth and advancement as one of the top-tier private universities in the state,” said Takeharu Miyama. “The University leadership team’s enthusiasm for the project reminds me of our experience with UNT and we look forward to constructing a transformational project that will have such a profoundly positive impact on the community and numerous students for years to come.”