KDC Pursues $3.5B In Financing For AT&T’s Huge HQ Campus In Plano
The developer set to build AT&T’s 2.3M SF headquarters campus in Plano wants to borrow $3.5B to fund construction.
Dallas-based KDC is seeking the funds through a process called credit tenant lease financing, which is private debt secured against rent payments of an investment-grade lessee instead of the actual real estate. The debt, being arranged by CGA Capital and CBRE, is set to have a weighted-average life of nearly 19 years, Bloomberg reported.
Credit tenant lease financing is typically done for amounts between $25M and $100M, according to a case study by PGIM. The amount being sought by KDC signals that the headquarters campus could cost significantly more than the $1.35B minimum that Plano set for construction costs as part of its $20M incentives package with AT&T.
CBRE declined to comment on the matter. CGA Capital, KDC and AT&T did not immediately respond to Bisnow’s requests for comment.
Along with the financial incentives, Plano officials gave AT&T a 65% property tax rebate for 25 years on improvements made at the 54-acre campus at 5400 Legacy Drive.
In addition to the building space, which is more than double the amount AT&T has at the 1M SF Whitacre Tower building in Downtown Dallas, the telecommunications titan’s new campus will have a 280-foot cell tower, a daycare center, parking garages and a pedestrian bridge.
AT&T CEO John Stankey called the tower “a foundational part of the campus” in a LinkedIn post in April. He said the tower will deliver “world-class cell coverage” to the campus and the surrounding neighborhood.
AT&T announced plans to relocate its headquarters from Downtown Dallas to Plano at the beginning of the year, though Stankey said at the time that the company is targeting an initial move-in date in the second half of 2028.
The new campus is expected to help AT&T attract and retain top talent, Stankey said in his April post.
The global telecommunications company required all office employees to return in person five days a week at the beginning of last year. The Plano campus is expected to offer a shorter commute for a majority of AT&T’s North Texas personnel, a company spokesperson said in January.
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