Academy Sports + Outdoors Opens in Valley Ranch Town Center

September 29, 2016

The Signorelli Company, a leader among real estate developers in Texas, has announced that Academy Sports + Outdoors, the premier sports, outdoor and lifestyle retailer, had a soft opening on September 23rd and will hold its Grand Opening in Valley Ranch Town Center on September 30th . Valley Ranch Town Center is a new 240-acre retail district located at the epicenter of growth in Northeast Houston market at the intersection of I-69 and the Grand Parkway. It is situated within the thriving 1,400-acre master-planned community of Valley Ranch just north of Kingwood, a development of The Signorelli Company. With a diverse collection of shopping, dining, and entertainment options from both national brands and local entities, Valley Ranch Town Center is poised to become the premier shopping center in the North Houston area.

Academy is the first of over 85 popular stores and restaurants to open its doors in Valley Ranch Town Center. Encompassing 1.5 million square feet of retail and mixed-use development, Valley Ranch Town Center is the largest retail project underway in the Houston area. "We are thrilled Academy is the first store to open in the Town Center and they have already seen a significant amount of traffic and sales," said Daniel Signorelli, President and CEO of The Signorelli Company. "The construction of the first phase is well underway, including a 123,000-square-foot Kroger Marketplace®, Sam’s Club, Hobby Lobby and Party City, which are expected to open this Fall or early next year." By 2017, Valley Ranch Town Center will be a regional shopping, dining and entertainment destination for those living and working in Northeast Houston and beyond.

Photo Caption from left to right: The Signorelli Company: Junious Williams (Project Manager Land Development), Kevin Layne (Associate), Heath Jehlik (Construction Manager Commercial Division), Danny Signorelli (CEO and President), Brady Wilkins (Executive Vice President Commercial Division), Heath Jehlik (Construction Manager Commercial Division), Alyssa McGuire (Marketing Coordinator)

This is the 95th store for Katy-based Academy Sports + Outdoors, and is expected to bring about 100 jobs to the area. Contractor for the 63,000-square-foot store is Houston-based Arch-Con. "We are honored to have participated in this Academy Sports + Outdoors store for the Porter/New Caney and Montgomery County area. The process of bringing the Signorelli vision to life for all to enjoy provided the Arch-Con team with great pleasure and a sense of fulfillment," said Marc MacConnell, Sr. Vice President of Arch-Con. "We are so happy with the end result and proud that our name is forever attached to this store."

"Our soft opening last week was an amazing success! We had customers that began showing up the night before and camped out overnight in order to be first in line," said Steve Matuszkiewicz, Operations Manager of the New Caney Academy Sports + Outdoors store. "We ended the day with the top sales slot in the entire company! We received tons of comments all day about how beautiful the store and plaza is, and continue to get positive feedback daily."

Also included in the first phase of development at Valley Ranch Town Center are dozens of specialty retailers and restaurants. Entertainment venues are planned to include a 10-screen Cinemark movie theater, a multi-attraction game venue, and a 10,000-seat amphitheater. The retail district will be bordered by a 135-acre park called Town Grove, a natural gathering place with seven serene lakes and a ‘splash pad’ water feature. Texan Drive Stadium, a state-of-the-art New Caney ISD football stadium that also serves as a venue for community-wide special events, is another unique attraction in the Town Center.

"East Montgomery County is finally in the spotlight," Signorelli said. "Within 15 miles of Valley Ranch Town Center, there is a population of 190,000 and located only 15 minutes to the 4th largest airport in the Country (IAH). With increased mobility in the area and the opening of the Grand Parkway, this is the epicenter of growth for the Northeast Houston market."

"More than 90 percent of Academy’s employees are residents who live within East Montgomery County Improvement District (EMCID) boundaries, and we believe that’s due largely because Academy located its employment center in EMCID’s facility this summer. That’s a great success story for Academy, for EMCID, and certainly for those in East Montgomery County seeking new employment opportunities," said Frank McCrady, President and CEO, East Montgomery County Improvement District. "Academy has always been a very strong community advocate in the markets that they serve, and store manager Jerry Green has continued that commitment with the opening at the ValleyRanch Town Center. We welcome them to East Montgomery County and look forward to working with them as community partners."

The Signorelli Company: Danny Signorelli (CEO and President), Brady Wilkins (Executive Vice President Commercial Division), Heath Jehlik (Construction Manager Commercial Division), Kevin Layne (Associate), Junious Williams (Project Manager Land Development)
East Montgomery County Improvement District Board: Frank McCrady (CEO and President of East Montgomery County Improvement District), Brenda Webb, Dale Martin, Stephen Carlisle, Fred Wetz, Martin Zepeda
Arch-Con: Marc MacConnell (Sr. Vice President), Ricardo Merino (Senior Project Manager), Javier Guerra (Project Manager), Trey Macon (Superintendent), Veronica Garza (Project Coordinator), Robert J Schindler (Safety Director)

In addition to major amenities like the Town Center, the community of Valley Ranch features new homes from the $200s to $400s. Parks, lakes, trails, a community clubhouse with a pool and splash area, plus excellent New Caney ISD neighborhood schools add to the appeal of Valley Ranch. Valley Ranch is planned to include approximately 2,500 homes and townhomes and 1,000 multi-family residences upon completion.

Valley Ranch is strategically located within minutes of Bush Intercontinental Airport, Houston’s Central Business District, The Galleria/Uptown, The Woodlands, and minutes from ExxonMobil’s 385-acre campus in Spring – making it one of the closest commutes of all of the recently announced master-planned communities.

About The Signorelli Company:

For more than two decades, The Signorelli Company, founded by Danny Signorelli, has developed and built the finest places where families can live, work, shop and play. Diversified in all aspects of real estate, from single-family and multi-family to retail, commercial and mixed-use projects, The Signorelli Company is recognized as a leader in Houston, and is one of the largest privately held development companies in the State of Texas. The company is headquartered in The Woodlands, TX. For more information about The Signorelli Company, visit www.signorellicompany.com.

About Academy Sports + Outdoors:

Academy Sports + Outdoors is a premier sports, outdoor and lifestyle retailer with a broad assortment of quality hunting, fishing and camping equipment and gear along with sports and leisure products, footwear, apparel, patio sets, barbecue grills and much more. The $4 billion company operates over 200 stores throughout Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas, where the company is based. The Academy Sports + Outdoors philosophy is to deliver an unparalleled shopping experience by providing convenience, offering a broad selection of quality products, delivering exceptional customer service and selling the right stuff at everyday low prices. For more information about Academy Sports + Outdoors, visit www.academy.com, facebook.com/academy, twitter.com/academy, pinterest.com/academy, youtube.com/academy and instagram.com/academy.