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Three decades later, the Mayo Hotel was purchased by a construction executive for the lowly price of one dollar. The Snyder family immediately embarked on a redevelopment plan to bring the 102-room hotel back to life. At a price tag of $42 million, the plan was ambitious, to say the least. Along with the purchase of the hotel, Snyder also purchased a nearby parking lot for a quarter of a million dollars. In 2009, the Mayo Hotel and Lofts reopened and ushered in an era of resurgence for downtown Tulsa.

Over the past several years, other investors have followed suit and poured nearly $1 billion into Tulsa’s central business district. Among the projects completed in the last decade is the BOK Center. Tapping into the desire of a new generation to flee the suburbs and live closer to the action, developers have added approximately 400 apartments to the downtown area. Many of those residences are located in older office buildings that have been repurposed. While the new apartments represent significant growth, more than 600 apartments are slated to open in the downtown district through this year to serve the renewed interest in Tulsa. Several new hotels are also planned in a bit to meet increasing interest from travelers.

At the forefront of much of the downtown rejuvenation in downtown Tulsa is the George Kaiser Family Foundation, a philanthropic organization with a $3.5 billion endowment. The Foundation has led efforts to revitalize Tulsa, particularly the Brady Arts District, located on the north end of the downtown area.

Among the projects tackled by the Kaiser Foundation is a truck loading dock that was replaced with an urban park that is the setting of frequent events and concerts. Nearby, an old warehouse was rehabbed and is now home to the Woody Guthrie Center, a musician archive repository and museum. Residents and visitors are now able to enjoy new restaurants and bars that have opened in the Brady district.

Businesses are also once again turning their attention to downtown Tulsa. According to Tulsa World, Hogan Assessment, a company providing personality assessments on a multinational level, recently broke ground on a 35,000-square-foot building. The $15 million-building will serve as the firm’s new headquarters. When completed, the building will include meeting space for training events and seminars and feature a rooftop entertainment area with a catering kitchen.

With numerous new projects in the pipeline, a rejuvenated Tulsa with new places to live, dine, and play within easy walking distance will now easily be able to compete with such markets as Denver, Dallas, and Chicago.

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While the sounds of construction fill the air for the moment, within the next two years, the look of downtown Dallas is likely to be completely different once all of the redevelopment is complete.

What exactly is driving so much activity and interest in Dallas’ downtown core? At the top of the list is a steadily increasing residential base, which continues to grow at a rapid clip as more and more transplants come to Texas to take advantage of the booming economy. Other factors driving interest in the transformation of the downtown area include the need to attract a growing Millennial workforce, which often prefers an environment more suited to a live-work-play setting.

While the city itself is deploying a significant amount of funding toward the revitalization of the downtown area, private investors have not been shy about lending their support, as well. Dallas News reports that investors have been betting big on downtown Dallas as office rents continue to spike. In fact, investors have poured hundreds of millions of dollars into downtown office projects, all in the hopes of tapping into the resurgence taking place within the central business district.

Among the biggest transactions to date is the purchase of the 60-story Fountain Place building, located on Ross Avenue, to the tune of nearly $200 million. The building was purchased earlier this year by Goddard Investment Group and Metropolitan Life Insurance. In addition to the hefty sales price paid by the two firms, millions of dollars will also go into remodeling the 28-year old building. A new parking garage will be included in the renovations.

Dallas News goes on to report that more than $1 billion has been funneled into purchasing and repurposing downtown office towers since the recession. While that may sound like a lot of money, the timing could not be better, as rent prices in nearby Uptown have topped $40 per square foot. By comparison, rents in the old financial district currently average a little more than $20 per square foot. Ultimately, investors are hoping that rents and values in the downtown area will be swept along with the tide of soaring Uptown rents.

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Millennials are usually defined as individuals between the ages of 25 and 34. The study ranked a total of 83 cities based on a variety of factors, including:

• Access to small business loans
• Mentorship and networking
• Local economy
• Affordability

Based on the study’s score scale, Denver scored a total of 59.97 points. Denver has become particularly well-known for its welcoming environment toward startups. This could prove to be quite important in terms of Denver’s commercial real estate market moving forward. According to a report released by the President’s Council of Economic Advisers, the millennial generation comprises one-third of the total U.S. population and will be responsible for shaping the country’s economy for many years to come.

The Urban Land Institute recently named Denver as the fourth best city in the country for commercial real estate investment in the coming year in their “Emerging Trends in Real Estate” report. The report is based on a survey of commercial real estate professionals conducted by Price Waterhouse Coopers. Other top cities included Houston, Austin, and San Francisco. Among the factors contributing to Denver’s selection in the top five cities was city’s appeal to the millennial generation. Other factors included the city’s industry exposure to both the energy and technology industries.

Denver certainly does seem to hold ample appeal for both millennial entrepreneurs as well as the tech industry. Earlier this year, it was announced that a 10-story office building would break ground next year as part of the Denver Tech Center. The building will be responsible for adding 300,000 square feet of office space. Planned for the corner of Arapahoe Road and Interstate 25, the property will be located adjacent to the Westin hotel, which is also slated to break ground next year. The project is expected to be completed by summer 2016.

Meanwhile, due to the influence of the millennial generation, the historic Five Points district in Denver is already undergoing a massive renovation. Currently, there are more than a dozen projects in varying stages of development. Many of those projects include retail, restaurant, and apartment buildings, all of which are designed to appeal to the increasing millennial generation in the Mile High City.

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Stretching between Pacific Avenue and Commerce, Elm and Main streets, the downtown district is now witnessing near historic sales volumes. While the sounds of construction fill the air for the moment, within the next two years, the look of downtown Dallas is likely to be completely different once all of the redevelopment is complete.

What exactly is driving so much activity and interest in Dallas’ downtown core? At the top of the list is a steadily increasing residential base, which continues to grow at a rapid clip as more and more transplants come to Texas to take advantage of the booming economy. Other factors driving interest in the transformation of the downtown area include the need to attract a growing Millennial workforce, which often prefers an environment more suited to a live-work-play setting.

While the city itself is deploying a significant amount of funding toward the revitalization of the downtown area, private investors have not been shy about lending their support, as well. Dallas News reports that investors have been betting big on downtown Dallas as office rents continue to spike. In fact, investors have poured hundreds of millions of dollars into downtown office projects, all in the hopes of tapping into the resurgence taking place within the central business district.

Among the biggest transactions to date is the purchase of the 60-story Fountain Place building, located on Ross Avenue, to the tune of nearly $200 million. The building was purchased earlier this year by Goddard Investment Group and Metropolitan Life Insurance. In addition to the hefty sales price paid by the two firms, millions of dollars will also go into remodeling the 28-year old building. A new parking garage will be included in the renovations.

Dallas News goes on to report that more than $1 billion has been funneled into purchasing and repurposing downtown office towers since the recession. While that may sound like a lot of money, the timing could not be better, as rent prices in nearby Uptown have topped $40 per square foot. By comparison, rents in the old financial district currently average a little more than $20 per square foot. Ultimately, investors are hoping that rents and values in the downtown area will be swept along with the tide of soaring Uptown rents.