When a developer has land, a tenant and a lender waiting, the contract matters as much as the building. Design-build puts the architect, the engineers and the builder under one agreement, with one price and one schedule, and it removes the handoff where most delays and finger-pointing occur. In the McAllen trade area, where users often want buildings quickly and owners watch costs closely, it is a practical way to deliver.
We act as design-builder for commercial, industrial and institutional work. The owner states the program, budget and date. We assemble a design team, price the building as the design develops and commit to a guaranteed number when the scope is clear. Our design partners are licensed Texas firms, and we are open about who does what. The owner keeps control of the program and approvals but does not have to referee between designer and builder.
The sections that follow explain how we run design-build, the rules that apply to it in this market, how it compares with other methods and what it costs. For a more traditional alternative, see construction manager at risk, and for the pricing work that comes first, preconstruction estimating.
We start with a program workshop. The owner and our team agree on size, function, quality level, budget and date. A set of concept drawings and a cost model follow within a few weeks. At that point the owner can see the building, a price range and a schedule, and decide whether to proceed.
From there the design advances in steps, with cost checks at each. Because the builder is in the room, choices such as structural system, roof type and finish level are made with real prices in hand. We release early packages for site work and long-lead items while the building design is finished, which overlaps phases and saves months. The owner receives a guaranteed maximum price or a lump sum before full construction starts, and we describe what is included and what is not.
Design-bid-build is sequential: design, bid, award, build. Design-build overlaps these. Permit submittals can begin when the design is partly complete, site work can start before the building is fully detailed, and procurement of steel and equipment can begin early. On a simple industrial building, this can cut weeks from the schedule, and on a complex project more.
The risks need to be managed. Starting construction before the design is finished means changes can be costly, so we hold decisions that affect structure or layout until they are firm. We also track permit review in the city, and McAllen's online portal and recent changes, including Saturday inspections for some items, help keep work moving. Our tilt-wall and metal building packages often fit this approach well.
Texas law sets the 2012 International Building Code as the commercial floor for municipalities under Local Government Code Sec. 214.216, as amended by HB 738, and cities may adopt later editions after a public hearing. McAllen's Building Permits and Inspections Department lists separate forms for residential, commercial, fence, sign, solar, energy storage, generator, swimming pool and demolition projects, which tells a design-builder to identify every permit type up front.
Public owners have additional constraints. Procurement laws control how a government entity may use design-build, and some projects must use a different method. We explain the options to public clients and work within their rules. Private owners have more freedom, and for them the key is to define roles in the contract: who owns the design, who carries coordination risk and how changes are priced.
Design-build does not make a building cheaper by itself. It makes cost clearer and reduces waste. The savings come from shorter schedules, fewer change orders, coordinated drawings and designs that fit the budget from the start. The costs are design fees, which are included in the contract, and a contingency that covers unknowns during design.
The biggest budget lever is scope. A design-build owner who changes the program midstream pays for it, as they would under any method. We therefore ask for clear priorities: what must be in the building, what is desirable and what can be deferred. With that, we can design to a budget instead of designing first and cutting later.
It is not always the best method. A project with a highly customized design, many stakeholders or an architect who must retain control of every detail may be better served by a conventional approach. A public project that must be bid lump-sum to the lowest bidder cannot use it. We say so when we see it.
For mixed-use or phased work, the question is more subtle. The 70 acre Boeye Reservoir site near the McAllen Convention Center was announced in October 2025 as a future mixed-use district of housing, retail and hospitality and was still in planning and design, which is the stage at which an owner decides how to deliver it. Large, multi-phase districts often split the work: design-build for individual buildings, with a master plan guiding the whole. Our convention center and 10th Street district page covers that area.
Our typical design-build clients are industrial developers, medical groups, retailers and owner-operators who want to occupy a building by a date. Healthcare systems often prefer it for clinics and outpatient buildings, where speed to opening matters. Industrial users, from flex buildings to plants in manufacturing, appreciate its simplicity.
It also works well for owners with repeating buildings, such as a retail chain opening several sites. The first building teaches the team what the prototype costs, and later ones become more efficient. We encourage owners with several locations to engage us for the group, not one at a time.
Tell us what the building must do, what it can cost and when you need it. We will return a team, a schedule and a price range.
One project executive from our side, who coordinates design and construction. You also have access to the lead architect and engineers. The goal is for you to have one person to call.
Yes. You approve the program, key design decisions and the final plans. We guide the process and tell you the cost effect of each choice.
Usually at the end of schematic design or in design development, once the scope is clear enough to price with confidence. Before that we give ranges. After that we commit to a number with defined inclusions and exclusions.
We prepare and submit them, often in stages. In McAllen, applications go through the online portal. We track comments and respond quickly, and we keep you informed.
Only if the law and the procurement rules for that agency allow it. We help public owners understand their options and follow their procedures.