WINDCREST, Texas – The Windcrest International Business Park is now ready for new tenants.
People may remember that the old warehouse used to be the former Rackspace headquarters.
The tech company upped and left back in 2022, leaving behind a large office space at a time when many companies were cutting back on traditional office needs following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Windcrest Mayor Daniel Reese said Rackspace’s departure also cost the city more than $1 million in sales tax revenue each year, money that helped fund road repairs and quality-of-life improvements.
Within a year of Rackspace leaving, Ohio-based company Industrial Commercial Properties LLC bought the building and began converting it into a business park.
Crews are removing much of the second level to create a more flexible space for future tenants.
Mario Hernandez, executive director of the Windcrest Economic Development Corp., said the city is already speaking with several possible tenants, including a technology company and a trade school.
“Many different kinds of businesses,” Hernandez said. “We’ve got a trade school that’s also considering the site, and a number of other leads that we’re working on.”
Hernandez said the site can accommodate up to 18 businesses, depending on how much space each company needs. He said a business could move in within as little as 60 days.
To make the property more attractive, Hernandez said operating costs have been cut in half, calling that a “big advantage” for companies considering the site.
City leaders hope the business park will bring new opportunities to Windcrest. Hernandez said the project is projected to create 1,200 high-level jobs within the first seven years, though that depends on which companies move in and when.
Some longtime residents are watching cautiously. Rey Valdez, who has lived in Windcrest for 50 years, said he remembers seeing Rackspace employees supporting nearby businesses during lunch hours.
However, Valdez said it is too early to know what impact the new business park will have.
“We’ll see,” Valdez said. “It depends if and when they get that place full. Cause that’s a big area.”