AT&T considering office spaces in Dallas suburbs, per reports

The city of Dallas says it’s working to keep the telecom giant headquartered in town.

DALLAS — Dallas-based AT&T is considering moves that could boost the telecom giant’s presence in the suburbs north of Dallas, per reports. 

It’s unclear whether any potential moves would see the telecom giant move its headquarters out of Downtown Dallas, but such a move would have a massive impact on Downtown property values, according to a study. 

AT&T has been headquartered in Whitacre Tower in the 200 block of South Akard Street in Downtown Dallas since 2008, when it relocated to North Texas from San Antonio.  

Our content partners at the Dallas Business Journal report AT&T has toured office spaces in suburbs north of Dallas, including the 1.8 million-square-foot The Park at Legacy site in Plano, which also serves as JCPenney’s headquarters. It remains unclear whether any moves AT&T may be considering would see the company’s headquarters moved from Whitacre Tower. 

“AT&T is actively exploring large blocks of space in northern DFW submarkets, signaling a shift in its office strategy while maintaining a headquarters presence in the Dallas [Central Business District],” Steve Triolet, senior vice president of research and market forecasting for commercial real estate firm Partners, told the Dallas Business Journal. “This move aligns with their push for more in-office work and positions the company closer to key talent pools in the northern suburbs.”

The company itself hasn’t commented on reports of the office search, though. 

“We don’t comment on rumors,” AT&T spokesperson Jeff Kobs told the Dallas Business Journal when asked about the search reports.

The city of Dallas, meanwhile, is negotiating with the company to try to keep it headquartered in the city, according to a Dallas City Council member.  

Dallas City Council member Paul Ridley, whose district includes the site of AT&T’s current headquarters, says Dallas is currently in negotiations with AT&T to try to keep the company headquartered in the city on a “long-term basis.”

Ridley told WFAA that the city is “committed to doing whatever we can to keep them.” He declined to say whether the city would be prepared to offer incentives to AT&T to keep it in Dallas, but reiterated that the “delicate negotiations” are ongoing.

A Dallas spokesperson told WFAA in a statement that “the City of Dallas does not comment on economic development matters.”

While it’s unclear whether any potential moves AT&T is considering would move the company’s headquarters out of Dallas, if AT&T did move, it would have a significant impact on the Downtown Dallas neighborhood, according to a study. 

A BCG study commissioned by Downtown Dallas Inc. found that property values Downtown would decrease 30% if AT&T left the neighborhood, potentially leading to a $62 million loss in annual property tax revenue.

Downtown Dallas Inc. Vice President of Marketing and Communications Monica Gonzalez declined to comment further, but said, “I can tell you that AT&T is continually engaged with Downtown.”