BECAUSE OF WINN-DIXIE
KELLER (Dallas Business Journal) – Years after Winn-Dixie's mass exodus from the area, Carrollton-based Tabani Group has leased the 85,000-square-foot Keller Crossing shopping center, once anchored by the grocer.
Ace Hardware, Tuesday Morning and a pet store will occupy the Winn-Dixie shell near the intersection of FM 1709 and Keller-Smithfield Road. The developer plans to add another 38,000 square feet of retail space, anchored by Stein Mart.
The city council is considering $290,000 in incentives for the project, including a three-year sales tax rebate and a reduction on building permit fees.
INVESTOR BAGS QUARRY
SAN ANTONIO (San Antonio Business Journal) – The Marquis at Quarry, a 224-unit multifamily property in Alamo Heights, has been sold to Los Angeles–based SCI Real Estate Investments LLC.
The Class-A apartment complex was built in 1994 and is only one of four multifamily communities in the Alamo Heights and Alamo Quarry area, where apartments historically have had occupancy rates exceeding 93 percent.
Apartment Realty Advisors' Austin and Houston offices represented the seller, CWS Apartment Homes LLC of California, in the transaction.
DEVINE INTERVENTION
DEVINE (San Antonio Business Journal) – A San Antonio private investor has purchased Devine Plaza, a 40-unit apartment complex at 100 L.C. Martin Dr.
The seller, also a private investor, is based in Converse.
Hendricks & Partners' San Antonio office negotiated the sale, which was completed in just over 30 days.
ENERGY ENOUGH FOR HALF
LA PORTE (Houston Business Journal) – Wilson Industries Inc., an energy equipment supplier, will consolidate three Houston-area operations into 450,000 square feet at Clay Development & Construction Inc.'s speculative Underwood Distribution Center I.
At 900,000 square feet, the massive distribution center, which will be built in Clay’s 200-acre Underwood Business Park, is big enough to hold 18 football fields. Wilson’s new location will include 50,000 square feet of office space and will ultimately accommodate about 360 office and warehouse personnel.
Colliers International represented Wilson in the transaction, one of the largest-ever leases in one of the biggest industrial structures built on speculation in the Houston area.
David Hudson, vice president of development and leasing in Houston for Duke Realty Corp., can recall larger leases in industrial facilities built specifically for a tenant but not a speculative building.
"In 15 years, I haven't seen a lease that big done in a spec building," he said.
Robert Clay, co-owner of Clay Development, says demand for large distribution space grew in February, when phase one of the Bayport Terminal opened at the Port of Houston to increase the amount of goods being transported through the Bayou City.
SUPERCENTER BRINGING JOBS
LONGVIEW (Longview News-Journal) – The city's newest Wal-Mart SuperCenter will open April 18, creating about 375 jobs.
The 184,000-square-foot store is at 4006 Estes Pkwy., across the street from the new, 13-space Longview Shopping Center.
SOUTHGATE PLUS LAND SOLD
WEATHERFORD (globest.com) – A private investor has purchased the 160-unit Southgate Glen Apartments from a Dallas developer for almost $11 million. The sale included almost 2.5 developable acres.
The eight-year-old, 92 percent leased Southgate Glen is on almost nine acres at 1712 Martin Dr., across from Weatherford College. It includes one-, two- and three-bedroom units averaging 807 square feet. The average rent is 88 cents per square foot.
The California-based buyer, under a tenant-in-common (TIC) arrangement, purchased the Class-A complex using a $5.4 million loan and 1031 exchange funds. The 20-year loan has ten years of interest-only payments at a 5.52 percent fixed-interest rate and 30-year amortization.
Dallas-based Quantum First Capital brokered the sale. Capstone Management Co., also of Dallas, will lease and manage the complex.
For more information about TICs, read "Cotenants: Not So Cozy a Relationship" in the forthcoming issue of Tierra Grande.
HAPPY TRAILS FOR DOMINION COMPLEX
HOUSTON (globest.com) – Equity Residential Properties Trust has sold the 843-unit Trails at Dominion Apartments to Centaurus Investments LLC.
Centaurus, based in San Francisco, has obtained an almost $45 million acquisition-and-rehab loan from California-based ARCS Commercial Mortgage Co. The ten-year loan includes seven years of interest-only payments at a fixed rate of 6.07 percent and a 30-year amortization schedule.
The firm will renovate the 16-year-old, 50-acre, Class-B complex at 200 Dominion Park Dr. The apartments are one-, two- and three-bedrooms ranging from about 550 to 1,486 square feet. Monthly rents currently range from $550 to $1,400.
According to Apartment Realty Advisor principal David Wylie, whose firm represented the Chicago-based REIT, Equity Residential is selling its central U.S. properties to focus its capital elsewhere.
OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING
SAN ANTONIO (globest.com) – American Opportunity for Housing Inc., in partnership with New Jersey–based Arsenal Real Estate Funds LLC, will spend almost $36 million to build two Central Texas affordable housing projects.
Arsenal is funding the projects with two junior construction loans of more than $10.2 million. Both projects are slated for completion in June 2008.
In San Antonio, construction has begun on the 224-unit Vantage at Converse Heights, an 11.5-acre project at Texas 78 near Sanguin Road.
In New Braunfels, construction is underway on the 228-unit Vantage at Comal Gardens on 11.4 acres along West County Line Road. Both complexes will have one-, two- and three-bedroom units averaging about 860 square feet with an average rent of $816 per month.
The architect of record is DA Associates' San Antonio office. An affiliate of Wood Partners LLC in Houston is the general contractor.
STEADY AS SHE GOES
COLLEGE STATION (Real Estate Center) – The latest revised figures from the Texas Workforce Commission show steady job growth, which is good news for the Texas economy, according to the Real Estate Center’s latest “Monthly Review of the Texas Economy.”
“Texas’ employment growth rate from February 2006 to February 2007 rose to 2.4 percent compared with 1.5 percent for the United States,” reported Real Estate Center Research Economist Dr. Ali Anari.
The state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell to 4.5 percent in February 2007 from 5.1 percent in February 2006.
Higher oil prices have boosted employment in Texas. The state’s natural resource and mining industry, consisting mainly of oil and natural gas extraction, gained 20,500 jobs from February 2006 to February 2007. This translates to an annual growth rate of 11.7 percent and ranked first in job creation followed by leisure and hospitality industry, professional and business services, construction, and financial activities.
Most new jobs have been created in four major metropolitan areas: Austin–Round Rock, Dallas-Plano-Irving, Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown and San Antonio.
The Midland metro area had the lowest unemployment rate in February 2007, followed by Amarillo, Odessa, Austin–Round Rock and Lubbock.
For more information, see the full report at recenter.tamu.edu/econ/.
MOUNTAIN WEST EXPANDS SOUTHWEST
HOUSTON (mountainwestip.com) – Mountain West Industrial Properties, a Colorado-based real estate developer and investor, has purchased a four-building, almost 93 percent leased portfolio from First Industrial Realty Trust.
Called the Houston Southwest Portfolio, the buildings total more than 337,000 square feet in four projects located at 3727 Greenbriar, 10610 – 10628 Rockley, 10325 – 10415 Landsbury and 8100 Westpark.
Each building is within a business park setting consisting of tiltwall construction and brick facades. Tenants include Tyco Valves & Controls, Puffer Sweiven and Dish Network.
Transwestern will manage and lease the portfolio. CB Richard Ellis Inc. in Houston represented the seller. Mountain West represented themselves in the transaction.
This purchase expands upon Mountain West's current area holdings, which include Kirby Business Center and Beltway Antoine Business Center.
COOPER LIFE EXTENSION
McKINNEY (globest.com) – Wellstone Communities LLC and Dr. Kenneth H. Cooper have bought an additional 140 acres for their Cooper Life development, bringing the planned health-centered concept community to 191 acres. The new land will add another $250 million of mixed-use space to the $900 million development.
Cooper Life will have roughly 250,000 square feet of retail, at least 155,000 square feet of office and medical office space, 225 townhouses or brownstones, a 124-unit condo tower and about 700 single-family homes. Ground will break in two weeks on 18 townhouses.
Located within the 2,500-acre Craig Ranch development, Cooper Life is across the street from the Cooper Institute for Sports Medicine Research and a sports complex anchored by Michael Johnson's Performance Training Center.
For more information about the Craig Ranch development, see the RECON article "Palladium High-rise Coming to 'Burbs."
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