By Kirk Cypel, chief development officer, CBG Commercial Real Estate Misconceptions about the Rio Grande Valley’s (RGV) retail market abound, particularly among those who are unfamiliar with South Texas. But those who are entrenched in shopping center ownership and development in the area are baffled and frustrated by retailers allowing these misconceptions to deter them from actively exploring the RGV. Questions like whether McAllen is an eight- or 10-hour drive from San Antonio, whether there’s an airport, if it’s safe — these are inquiries that simply make local retail owners and operators shake their heads. The same applies to brokers who inquire about securing endcap, freeway-visible spaces for under $10 per square foot. The Valley Reality The RGV is less than a four-hour drive from San Antonio and is served by three commercial airports. It resembles a metropolitan area akin to California’s Inland Empire, where several interconnected cities form a cohesive economic unit. Yet many are surprised to learn of the RGV’s considerable size, spanning 422,107 square miles — 60 percent larger than the Inland Empire and more comparable to San Diego County in size. The Council for South Texas Economic Progress reports that the population is over 1.4 million, …
