Big moves are happening for Silver Ventures, the firm behind San Antonio's booming Pearl district, as they're now offering a slice of the pie to outside investors, ready to expand their empire of upscale development. Bill Shown, CEO of Oxbow Development Group dropped this investment nugget at a Real Estate Council of San Antonio shindig, revealing plans to generate cash flow for their future real estate schemes with a little help from third-party backers, according to the San Antonio Report.
With a grand launch expected in the fall, details on the minimum buy-in for this exclusive opportunity are still under wraps, but the lineup's looking sweet—think: a ritzy new hotel, plush residential buildings, and not just another concrete jungle parking lot, "There are going to be folks that want to own part of that," Shown said, as reported by LinkedIn.
Bryant Ambelang, the top dog at Silver Ventures, is betting big on this venture, touting Pearl's "fully vetted business concepts" as magnetizing moolah-makers. The company, nurtured by Kit Goldsbury since '95, isn't just playing around—having sold stakes in NatureSweet last year—they've got a diverse portfolio from munchies to moo-cows and are not putting their investment eggs all in one basket. Silver Ventures aims to keep the cash flowing by letting Oxbow Development spread its wings without chaining it too close to the corporate nest.
For now, Ambelang confirms that the sweet deal's only up for grabs in San Antonio because despite other cities batting their eyes at them, Silver Ventures is keeping it local. Meanwhile, Shown tossed a number out there that's nothing to sneeze at: We're talking a cool $600 to $700 million in projects ready for investor dollars, so, whip out your calculators and figure that if banks cough up 55% of the funds, investors need to bring 45% to the table, and that's a lot of dough by any standard.
But it ain't all sunshine and rainbows—there's a word of caution underpinning this investor flirtation. As Shown warns, the economic forecast is shaky, interest rates are playing hardball, and those construction price tags ain't getting any shorter, "We’ve got to get these things to pencil, not to the satisfaction of our parent but to the satisfaction from the outside world," he said, as cited by the San Antonio Report.
