Posted: Jan 09, 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 09, 2009
Contact: Sydney Townsend
stownsend@sunwestpr.com
Sunwest Communications
(214) 373-1601
KDC TOPPING OUT THE 1 MILLION SF HEADQUARTERS FOR BLUE CROSS AND BLUE SHEILD OF TEXAS
Tree Topping Ceremony commemorates one year since the start of construction
DALLAS – KDC today celebrates the topping out of the 1 million-square-foot headquarters facility for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas (BCBSTX) in Richardson.
The topping out ceremony marks the completion of the highest point of construction, the 15-story main tower of the BCBSTX complex. The ceremony will include the lifting of an evergreen tree, with ornament-sized name plaques signed by attendees, to the top of the main tower.
“This ceremony gives us the opportunity to thank everyone affiliated with one of the largest development projects North Texas has seen in quite some time,” said Don Mills, senior vice president, KDC. “It also allows us to recognize the fine individuals who have provided a safe worksite with no significant injuries, and who will continue to focus on safety in 2009.”
“McCarthy is excited to celebrate the Topping Out of the headquarters for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas while recognizing all of the hard work that has gone in to the project thus far,” said McCarthy’s Texas Division President Mike McWay. “We look forward to continued success on the completion of KDC’s project and are honored to be an integral part of not only the growth of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas, but also the City of Richardson.”
Construction of the headquarters for BCBSTX began in January 2008 and is scheduled for completion in the fourth quarter of 2009. It is the area’s largest build-to-suit development project since the mid 1980s. The 1,050,000-square-foot headquarters includes a 15-story and a seven-story office tower, as well as a 3,500-car parking structure. It also will include a full service cafeteria with indoor and outdoor dining areas, as well as multiple conference and meeting rooms and a 400-seat auditorium. The interior design showcases Texas stone accents and custom woodwork. The exterior is comprised of architectural precast, glazed aluminum wall systems and natural stone.
“Officially marking this important milestone in the construction of our new headquarters facility is exciting for all of us at Blue Cross,” said Darren Rodgers, president, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas. “I look forward to the opportunity to recognize the business, government and community leaders who have helped to make it all possible.”
The BCBSTX headquarters is located on 34 acres of land in the Galatyn Park area of Richardson, on the northeast corner of North Central Expressway and Lookout Drive. The new facility will consolidate BCBSTX’s multiple Dallas-area locations into one convenient campus.
Upon completion, the new facility will house approximately 3,900 BCBSTX employees. As BCBSTX continues to grow, KDC has land available and entitlements in place to develop the headquarters to a total of 2.3 million square feet with room to house 8,000 employees.
Dallas-based Corgan Architects, Inc. and Chicago-based zpd+a are the project architects for the new headquarters.
About KDC
KDC, one of America’s leading commercial real estate and investment companies, provides a full range of commercial real estate services including corporate build-to-suit development, acquisitions, corporate facility project/construction management, project financing, asset and land management, and marketing and leasing. KDC is headquartered in Dallas and has offices in Atlanta; Charlotte, N.C.; and Detroit. For more information visit www.kdc.com
About McCarthy
Celebrating nearly 30 years of building in Texas, McCarthy is the nation’s 10th largest domestic general contractor (Engineering News-Record, May 2008) and one of the nation’s oldest privately held construction firms. An employee-owned company, McCarthy offers general contracting, construction management and design/build services for the following project types: office buildings, tenant interiors, parking structures, healthcare, educational, bridges and highways, laboratory, biotechnology, entertainment, retail, microelectronic, and industrial facilities, mixed-use and multifamily residential. In addition to Dallas, McCarthy has offices in Sacramento, San Francisco, San Diego and Newport Beach, Calif.; Phoenix; Las Vegas; St. Louis and Atlanta. For more information visit www.mccarthy.com
About Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas — the only statewide, customer-owned health insurer in Texas — is the largest provider of health benefits in the state, working with nearly 40,000 physicians and 400 hospitals to serve 4 million members in all 254 counties. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas is a division of Health Care Service Corporation (HCSC), the country’s largest customer-owned health insurer and fourth largest health insurer overall. HCSC is a Mutual Legal Reserve Company and an Independent Licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.