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NEXT GENERATION MASTER PLAN COMMUNITY TAKES SHAPE 15 MINUTES FROM DOWNTOWN

Shadow Creek Ranch, a 3,300-acre residential, retail and commercial development, offers residents a convenient location to all of Houston's employment, cultural and entertainment districts

HOUSTON, TEXAS (May 24, 2001) – Shadow Creek Ranch Development Company announced today, their overall vision and plan for Shadow Creek Ranch, a 3,300-acre community located 15 minutes southeast of downtown Houston.  Shadow Creek Ranch is the largest master-planned community in close proximity to a major U.S. city's central business and cultural district. 

Located on Shadow Creek Parkway, at U.S. Highway 288 (Nolan Ryan Expressway), Shadow Creek Ranch is a short commute to all the major business, recreation, cultural and entertainment corridors in Houston. With easy access to Highway 288, Sam Houston Tollway and Highway 59, it's approximately 15 minutes to both the downtown business district and the Texas Medical Center.  "We will even have Kirby Drive running through our community in the near future," said Shadow Creek Ranch principal Carlo Ferreira, "and we believe Shadow Creek Ranch will enjoy the same success as the other master planned communities on Kirby - River Oaks and West University.

Downtown Houston is experiencing a renaissance as nearly 4,000,000-square-feet of new office space is currently proposed or under construction.  "If every 250-square-feet of office space represents one employee," said Ferreira, "then approximately 16,000 new jobs would be created by the revitalization of the downtown business district.  Because of its location all of those people will find Shadow Creek Ranch, ' The place to live'." 

Recently the Texas Medical Center announced that its development of the Southeast Texas BioTechnology Park would create over 23,000 jobs within the medical center. And, McDade, Smith, Gould, Johnson and Company (MSGJ & Co.) just completed the sale of the 300,000-square-foot St. Anthony Hospital building to downtown veteran developer Sam Lutfak.  According to Ned Torian of MSGJ & Co., Lutfak plans to convert that building to office space in order to meet the increasing demand for office space in that area.  "The quality of homes available along the 288 corridor, south of the med-center, is a tremendous plus for the growing job market in the Texas Medical Center.

The large majority of Houston area master plan communities have driving times in excess of 45 minutes.  "Today's tremendous growth in the suburbs has led to congestion and major traffic

challenges," said president of Bohlke & Associates, Bob Bohlke.  "Now with the revitalization of downtown, people want the control and amenities offered in a master plan community, but they want it closer to town." 

When complete, Shadow Creek Ranch will encompass approximately 12,000 residential homes including single-family, multi-family and senior housing units.  The single-family homes will range in price from the low $100's to over $1 million. An estimated 5,000 jobs will be created as this self-contained community development will also include commercial, industrial, civic and recreational sites such as schools, churches, a hospital, day care, City Hall Annex, police and fire stations, library and designated senior assisted living areas.

"We've will create enough jobs within the community to encourage people to live here and work here," said Shadow Creek Ranch Development Company principal Gary Cook.  "The shopping, retail and commercial development is planned for convenience in well thought locations and there is significant interest from a regional mall developer for this site," he said.  The main entrance to Shadow Creek Ranch is conveniently located on Highway 288 at the Shadow Creek Parkway exit and marked with a dramatic stone and brick monument and three flags that can easily be viewed from the downtown Houston district.

Residents of Shadow Creek Ranch will have the shortest commute, in time and driving distance, of any master plan community in Houston. Like Nolan Ryan's pitches, the commute from Shadow Creek Ranch to all of Houston's major employment, entertainment and cultural corridors will be a fast one. "Our homeowners will be able to head home from the office at 6 p.m., go home to change clothes, walk and feed the dog and still make it downtown to a play or ball game that starts at 7 p.m.," said Ferreira.

Featuring hundreds of waterfront homesites, the community will encompass a dramatic 300-acre system of lakes.  A 20-acre lake at Kirby Drive announces the entry to the Village of Emerald Bay, the first residential village to be developed within the community.  "We're not just offering  lake front property," said land planner Kerry R. Gilbert of Gilbert & Associates, "we're offering a lake living experience. People want open space and aesthetic beauty.  The lakes create the open space, and it is our job to create the beauty," he said.  Gilbert & Associates designed the land plan for several other Houston master plan communities including Cinco Ranch, Windrose and South Shore Harbor.

A hiking and biking network of almost 22 miles of trails and pedestrian greenbelts will also traverse the property connecting the various villages and activity centers including parks, recreational facilities, retail and commercial facilities and schools. Upon completion Shadow Creek Ranch will be home to seven schools served by the Alvin Independent School District.

The exceptional characteristics inherent in the development of Shadow Creek Ranch include a commitment to the enhancement of the quality of life through land plan design, landscaping, lakes, parks and a nature preserve.  The land plan for Shadow Creek Ranch will incorporate

contoured streets with impressive setbacks and diverse and varied landscaping. Groundbreaking on the first phase of model homes is slated for this fall, and should be completed in February 2002. Shadow Creek Ranch's first residents will move in early 2002. Over 2 million yards of dirt will be moved to transform this land into a rolling landscape, atypical of this region.