With approvals from the Las Colinas Association in hand, Parmenter has launched a multimillion-dollar redevelopment that’s set to transform Mandalay Towers 1, 2, and 3 in the Urban Center. The three-building complex, which sits along the Mandalay Canal, totals more than 800,000 square feet, including about 50,000 square feet of retail space.

Four years ago, Parmenter spent millions to upgrade Mandalay Tower 1 (formerly VHA Place). It’s using the same interiors firm, ENTOS Design, to execute a harmonious plan for Mandalay Towers 2 and 3.

“The differences are going to be night and day—very light and bright,” said Josh Hedderich, senior vice president of asset management for Parmenter. “Mandalay Tower 2’s lobby will have a new reception desk, seating areas, and a lounge component with new furniture and pendant light fixtures. We’re reorienting the conference center and adding modern features and finishes. We’re also making the fitness center much more contemporary. In Mandalay Tower 3, we’re removing the dark granite in the lobby and reconfiguring it, carving out a tenant lounge and giving the whole building a boutique feel. We’re also revamping the entryways and upgrading the signage at all three buildings.”

The crown jewel of the redevelopment is Mandalay Park, an acre of green space that sits in the center of the three buildings. What previously was a typical office courtyard is being transformed into an expansive outdoor amenity with a fire pit, open-air kitchen, dining and seating areas, an elevated platform with an arbor, a koi pond and other water features, and a Thermory wood walking trail.

Designed by Complete Landsculpture, the park takes its inspiration from the water, a nod to the development’s location on the Mandalay Canal and Lake Carolyn. “The new park allows us to provide an amenity very few competing office properties have—a beautiful, landscaped oasis for our customers,” Hedderich said.

Work on the massive overhaul will finish early this summer. The improvements come at a time when the Las Colinas office market is seeing renewed interest, due in large part to new mixed-use projects that are nearing completion: Water Street, a $100 million development on Lake Carolyn that will add more than 60,000 square feet of restaurants and shops, along with more than 300 apartments; and The Irving Music Factory, a nearby entertainment district that will add 250,000 square feet of retail space—including a concert venue, movie theater, comedy club, shops, and more than 20 restaurants.

“These two developments are finally going to make the Urban Center what it was always intended to be—a true live-work-play environment,” Hedderich said. “The office towers stood alone for decades, joined more recently by multifamily. But the ‘play’ component was always missing. Water Street and the Music Factory will change that.”

These walkable amenities come on the heels of the completion of the DART Orange line, which now extends to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport. Additionally, Mandalay Towers is exclusively served by the Bell Tower stop on the Las Colinas Area Personal Transit (APT) system, a free people mover that travels throughout the Urban Center and connects to DART’s Orange line. To enhance connectivity even more, Parmenter is launching a bike-share program at Mandalay Towers and has plans for an electric cart shuttle service for tenants to get to nearby shops and restaurants.

Cushman & Wakefield’s Chris Taylor, Executive Managing Director, and Rodney Helm, Managing Director, are longtime leasing agents for Mandalay Tower and took the property from 10 to 80 percent occupied. They were selected to oversee marketing of the entire Mandalay Towers complex last summer and have worked with Parmenter to craft a new marketing strategy. “The plan is to draft on the success of Mandalay Tower 1,” Helm said. “The buildings already have a lot to offer. The upgrades will give tenants an exceptional return on investment, especially when compared to pricier options in Las Colinas and other submarkets.”

Interest in Mandalay Towers is strong, and Helm and Taylor expect activity to become even more brisk as Mandalay Park and the building improvements are completed. The brokers are seeing demand from office prospects within Las Colinas as well as outlying submarkets. “There are tenants in Far North Dallas and even Richardson/Plano that never would have considered Las Colinas in the past, but with State Highways 121 and 190, it’s a much shorter commute,” Helm said. “We’re seeing interest from all over, due to the transportation corridors, proximity to the airports and executive and workforce housing, and, especially, the new walkable amenities.”

“I have lived and breathed this project for years, and it’s exciting to see the new renovations take shape” Hedderich said. “Our goal is to become a top choice for office users. We don’t want to just meet the market—we want to exceed it.”