Downtown Dallas’ landmark Magnolia Building is for sale
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An almost century-old high-rise that’s become Dallas’ signature building is up for sale.
The 29-story Magnolia Building — topped by the iconic flying red horse sign — is on the market.
The landmark downtown tower has been home to the 329-room Magnolia Hotel since the late 1990s. Now the treasured tower — the tallest building west of the Mississippi when it opened in 1922 — is being offered for sale by its Denver owners.
The Dallas office of commercial property broker Hodges Ward Elliott is marketing the property.
“We have already had a ton of interest, and we have done multiple property tours,” said Hodges Ward Elliott managing director John Bourret. “It’s going to be attractive to a wide variety of investors.”
The Magnolia Hotel is just down Commerce Street from Neiman Marcus’ flagship store. It’s also across the street from AT&T’s new $100 million Discovery District, which has outdoor public spaces, restaurants and retail.
“The whole Commerce Street corridor has gotten a lot better with AT&T’s headquarters and the renovation of the Statler Hotel,” Bourret said.
Dallas’ landmark Adolphus Hotel across Akard Street from the Magnolia also just completed a major renovation.
Designed by a British lord as the headquarters for a Texas oil company, the Magnolia Building became symbolic of Dallas’ booming 20th century economy.
In 1934, the skyscraper’s position on the city skyline was cemented forever when the 11-foot tall, red-neon outlined Pegasus sign was added.
The revolving display was an advertisement for building owner Magnolia Oil Co. and was an instant hit with Dallas residents.
The building was designed by Sir Alfred Bossom, the English architect who also did Uptown’s landmark Maple Terrace apartment building.
The Magnolia Hotel was put on watch lists by lenders earlier this year who were concerned about the owners’ ability to pay the debt with the loss of business during the pandemic.
Holtze Magnolia LLP, a unit of Denver developer Steven Holtze and the Magnolia Hotel Co., owns the building.
Once vacant for many years, the downtown tower is prized by local preservationists and has landmark status.
“The Magnolia is one of the most beloved buildings in downtown,” said David Preziosi, executive director of Preservation Dallas. “In the late 1970s, the city wanted to demolish it, and we did a study on its reuse that helped convince them to not do that.
“Could you imagine Dallas without it and the Pegasus? I certainly can’t.”
Bourret said the Magnolia is just the latest U.S. hotel property to be put up for grabs.
“The balance of this year and into next year, we are going to see a lot of buying opportunities,” Bourret said. “There will be a wide variety of hotels on the market — some distressed and some not distressed.”
The hotel sector has been one of the areas of the U.S. economy hardest hit by COVID-19, and analysts warn that a recovery likely is a year or two away.
The Magnolia Building is the third downtown Dallas historic property to be put up for sale since the start of the pandemic.
The more than century-old Awalt Building and the Purse Building in the West End historic district are also on the market.
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