Massive 2,100-Acre Houston Development Site Hits the Market

By Georgiana Mihaila, Associate Editor

The Sam Houston Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America is looking to sell its more than 2,100-acre Camp Strake property, considered to be one of the largest available contiguous land parcels currently available in the Houston metropolitan area.

Jones Lang LaSalle Inc. has already been hired to market the property, and the proceeds from the sale will be used to buy, develop and endow in perpetuity a new Camp Strake north of the city. JLL capital markets experts including Managing Director Tom Kirschbraun, Senior Vice President Scott Cullen and Vice President Mark Lindenbaum are leading the national and global efforts on the offering, with Houston Market Director Dan Bellow and Senior Vice President John Talhelm leading local outreach.

The development site, located on the southwest corner of Interstate 45 North and Loop 336, south of Conroe, is expected to draw a great deal of both national and international interest, featuring more than two miles of commercial frontage, secluded residential areas and natural amenities suitable for recreation, parks, hiking trials, bike trails and environmental mitigation.

Bellow believes that “Camp Strake is truly one of Houston’s treasures, but the time is right to create a new gem for this city. Between the Exxon Mobil Corporate Campus opening next year with more than 14,000 employees and the Town Center in The Woodlands with approximately 50,000 jobs currently in place and the potential for another 25,000, the north Conroe area is one of the top growth areas in the entire state of Texas.  Amazing things are happening here.”

The massive site presents no specific zoning requirements and will be annexed by the city of Conroe, whose mayor, Webb Melder, has declared himself in favor of future on-site development, offering potential new owners/developers full support.

The Camp Strake property served as the flagship camp for the nation’s largest Boy Scout Council for more than 70 years. It was named in honor of Susan and George Strake Sr., who provided the funds to purchase the camp property in 1943.

Photo: Grand Lake, the camping and activity area of Camp Strake, courtesy of Sam Houston Area Council.