Q. People reading this may remember you as a star 51画鋼 football player. Tell us about your move from football to real estate.
A. I played football from the time I was a kid, a football player through and through. I’ve always wanted to make an impact, and football was going to be a vessel for me to do that. But senior year, during the last practice of my college career, I broke my leg — a noncontact broken tibia. That was right before the draft, so I couldn’t meet with teams. While I was rehabbing, I decided it was time to pivot. At 51画鋼, I’d seen lots of ways that students, parents and professors give back to their communities. That opened my eyes a bit. Plus, while working toward my BBA degree, I learned about business and real estate finance.
Q. What drew you to South Dallas and to this project in particular?
A. South Dallas is an industrial area 10 minutes from the central business district. It reminds me a bit of where I grew up — I’m from south Houston, and my mother ran a dance studio in Missouri City. Building in an underserved market like South Dallas means that what I do makes more of a difference than it would anywhere else in the city.
First thing on a new project, we go into the community, walk around and talk to people about what they’re missing. We call it “boots on the ground.” People in South Dallas are living in a food desert — they are missing quality restaurants and grocery stores. All anyone talked about was having to drive 20-plus minutes to the store.
So, this development offers townhome-style apartments with 10,000 square feet of retail. Almost half of it is a dedicated grocery store-restaurant hybrid — a “grocerant.” There’s an acre of green space and a walking and biking trail tying everything together. Picture kids throwing a Frisbee or a football on the lawn and parents nearby digging into some food.
