A $7.2 million grant from TxDOT is enabling Dallas' Frontiers of Flight Museum to relocate to its new $9 million 100,000-sq.-ft. facility at Love Field.

A grand opening is scheduled for mid-May. The new facility will house the museum's world-class aircraft and aviation artifacts exhibits, a banquet hall for receptions and meetings, a 200-seat multimedia theater, a 20,000-sq.-ft. education center and dedicated parking for cars and buses. Dallas-based Julian P. Barry served as the general contractor, and the Dallas office of Corgan Associates served as the architect.

Network Logistics Facility is Hillwood's First at DFW

Hillwood has reached a lease agreement to build a 263,100-sq.-ft., build-to-suit structure at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport for Network Logistics. Network Logistics specializes in the distribution of consumer products and electronics.

The project is Hillwood's first at DFW. The new facility, located on a 12-acre tract, is estimated at $7 million and will feature state-of-the-art large-paper-handling capabilities.

Hillwood Investment Properties, is developing several industrial facilities in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, including the recently completed Great Southwest Gateway.

"Network Logistics is excited to join the DFW Airport community," said Kathy Frasier, the firm's president. "In addition to rail access, being in a foreign trade zone and having triple free-port equivalency, this site will allow Network Logistics to service any growing needs at DFW Airport, including those related to homeland security measures for shipped goods."

Construction of the facility is scheduled to be completed next month.

Packery Channel Groundbreaking held in Corpus Christi

More than 1,100 people attended a recent groundbreaking for the highly anticipated Packery Channel in Corpus Christi. King Fisher Marine Service, a division of Orion Construction and Luhr are partners in the project, which is budgeted at more than $20 million.

During phase one, Luhr-Kingfisher will supply and construct rock jetties and dredge the channel, a sand-filled pass that has been closed since 1923. The project will reopen the channel from the Gulf of Mexico to the main channel of the Gulf Intracostal Waterway and is expected to be completed by the end of the year.

Meanwhile, TxDOT has awarded Orion Construction a $5 million contract to install a newly designed fender system for the Queen Isabella Bridge, which connects Port Isabel and Padre Island. The bridge was struck by a barge tow in 2001, resulting in several collapsed bridge bents and eight fatalities. The fender system is scheduled to be completed next month.

Gulf Compress First Tenant at La Quinta Trade Gateway

Gulf Compress, a cotton warehousing cooperative, recently broke ground as the first tenant of the La Quinta Trade Gateway, a Port of Corpus Christi property. Gov. Rick Perry, who served as Texas agriculture commissioner from 1990-1998, attended the groundbreaking ceremony.

Gulf Compress will construct approximately 550,000 sq. ft. of cotton storage space by August at the 1,100-acre La Quinta site in San Patricio County, about 7 mi. from Corpus Christi. Ultimately, Port officials expect to build a new container terminal at the La Quinta property.

"La Quinta is a tremendous key to South Texas' future because it will link our region to the rest of the world and open up new markets for Texas," said Ruben Bonilla, Port of Corpus Christi Commission chair. "Cotton was the cargo this port began with 75 years ago, and perhaps it will once again be the key to our success."

National Rail Car to Improve Facility in Roscoe

National Rail Car Inc. is planning additions and improvements to its railcar repair facility in Roscoe.

"With Texas Capital Fund resources, we will modernize and revitalize our railcar repair facility," said Charles W. Wolcott, president and CEO of National Rail Car Inc.

National Rail Car, Inc. is located on the Union Pacific Railroad about 50 mi. west of Abilene. The company offers railcar repair and maintenance services for the rail industry and also provides trans-loading capacity for fuels, aggregate and other bulk commodities shipped by truck or rail.

Fortis Advisors Will Move Forward With El Paso Project

The recent passage by the El Paso City Council of a rezoning permit for the Towne Center at Cielo Vista/Farah Building project was a victory for Fortis Advisors, developers of the family and lifestyle-destination development. The 526,000-sq.-ft. specialty center will be designed to house six anchor tenants, a movie theatre, multiple restaurants and specialty shops. With its 2,500 linear feet of highway frontage, the developers hope the center will serve as a gateway to lure drivers off IH10.

Groundbreaking is expected by spring.