DONNA AND MCALLEN, TEXAS — Houston-based brokerage firm Baker Katz has arranged two restaurant leases in South Texas for Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen. The first deal is for a 6,142-square-foot space in Donna, and the second deal is for a restaurant within Trenton North Shopping Center in McAllen. Brian Smith of Merit Commercial Real Estate represented the landlord in the Donna transaction, and Louie Tijernia of CBRE represented the landlord in the McAllen transaction. Jason Baker and Traci Holman of Baker Katz represented the parent company and operator, Orlando-based Darden Restaurants Inc. The openings are slated for the third and fourth quarter, respectively.
PLANO, TEXAS — Simpson Strong-Tie, a provider of engineered structural connectors and building solutions, has signed a 38,372-square-foot office lease at Granite Park in Plano. The space spans one full floor and half of another within Granite Park 6, a 19-story, 422,109-square-foot building that was completed in late 2023. Doug Carignan, Christy Rhea and Ryan DeAngelis of CBRE represented the tenant in the lease negotiations. Robert Jimenez, Burson Holman and Elizabeth Fortado represented the landlord, Granite Properties, on an internal basis.
HOUSTON — Locally based brokerage firm Finial Group has negotiated a 23,625-square-foot industrial lease in northwest Houston. According to LoopNet Inc., the single-tenant, crane-served building at 7214 Harms Road was originally constructed in 2014. The building includes 2,400 square feet of office space. Jason Gibbons, Jack Gaffney and William Alcorn of Finial represented the undisclosed landlord in the lease negotiations. The tenant is railcar manufacturer CAF USA Inc.
WOBURN, MASS. — InBloom Autism Services has signed a 10,000-square-foot office lease in Woburn, a northern suburb of Boston. The provider of behavioral therapy services for young children relocated and expanded from its previous space on Constitution Way to the building at 12 Gill St., which according to LoopNet Inc. was built in 2000 and totals 182,603 square feet. Keith Page of Colorado-based brokerage firm CARR represented the tenant in the lease negotiations. Mike Truesdale represented the locally based landlord, Cummings Properties, on an internal basis.
CHICAGO — AmTrust RE has added two leases and three renewals at One East Wacker, a 41-story office tower overlooking the Chicago Riverwalk. Mark Gunderson, Wendy Katz and Erica Marshall of Stream Realty Partners, AmTrust’s leasing agent for its Chicago office portfolio, arranged the leases. Aeropay, a financial technology company enabling businesses to accept compliant, cashless and digital payments, leased 15,000 square feet across the entire 39th floor. Paul Reaumond and Tyler Reaumond of CBRE represented the tenant. The Japan External Trade Organization, a nonprofit organization providing business support services to companies expanding to Japan, renewed its 8,000-square-foot lease on the 33rd floor. Boris Yelyashov and Kyle Robbins of Transwestern represented the tenant. Additionally, law firm Gair Gallo Eberhard expanded its lease to 7,000 square feet. ECD Co., a real estate innovation company, renewed its 3,700-square-foot lease. Lastly, Lawyers Trust Fund of Illinois signed a new lease for 2,500 square feet. AmTrust modernized the lobby, upgraded the exterior and entrances, created multiple spec suites and renovated the corridors and restrooms at One East Wacker, which totals 560,000 square feet. Additionally, the owner recently completed a new amenity floor overseen by wellness amenities management service Lulafit. The amenity floor also includes …
DETROIT — Michigan State University (MSU) has partnered with Apple to open the Apple Manufacturing Academy this summer in downtown Detroit’s First National Building. The academy will offer free in-person and online courses and will be the first of its kind in the United States. While based in Detroit, the academy will be open to companies nationwide. Apple engineers, along with experts from MSU, will consult with small- and medium-sized businesses on how they can implement artificial intelligence and smart manufacturing techniques. MSU also partners with Apple on the Apple Developer Academy, with support from the Gilbert Family Foundation. This academy, located in downtown Detroit, has graduated roughly 200 participants annually since 2021.
PORTLAND AND EDINBURG, TEXAS — Houston-based brokerage firm Baker Katz has arranged two leases in South Texas for Olive Garden. The first deal is for a 7,805-square-foot restaurant in Portland, located outside of Corpus Christi, and the second deal is for a 7,825-square-foot space in the Rio Grande Valley city of Edinburg. Lynann Pinkham of Cravey Real Estate Services represented the landlord in the Portland transaction, and Ron Reimer of First Hartford Realty represented the landlord in the Edinburg transaction. Jason Baker and Traci Holman of Baker Katz represented the parent company and operator, Orlando-based Darden Restaurants Inc. The openings are slated for the second quarter of 2025 and sometime in 2026, respectively.
MCDONOUGH, GA. — Halpern Enterprises has completed a 6,486-square-foot, multi-tenant retail strip center located at 5905 E. Lake Parkway in McDonough, a southern suburb of Atlanta. The three-tenant property is part of the 20-acre North McDonough Village mixed-use development. The property features a 2,486-square-foot Starbucks Coffee with a drive-thru, a 2,000-square-foot available space and a 2,000-square-foot dentist’s office. Starbucks recently opened for business at the center on a 10-year lease. Brad Oppenheimer led the project on behalf of Halpern and secured the lease with Starbucks. Palmer Bayless of Emerge Real Estate Services represented Starbucks in the lease negotiations.
DENTON, TEXAS — Lotte Global Logistics has signed a 227,420-square-foot, full-building industrial lease at I-35 Convergence Park in the North Texas city of Denton. The speculative facility is located within Westpark Industrial Park. Joe Yoon of Realty Bank Group represented the tenant in the lease negotiations. Chris Teesdale, Tom Pearson and Ben Wallace of Colliers represented the landlord, Dallas-based Hunt Southwest. The other building at I-35 Convergence Park totals 250,080 square feet and was leased in 2021.
MURPHY, TEXAS — Dallas-based EōS Fitness will open a 43,801-square-foot gym in Murphy, a northeastern suburb of Dallas. EōS Fitness is backfilling a space previously occupied by 24 Hour Fitness at 229 E. FM 544, which according to LoopNet Inc. was originally constructed on a 6.8-acre site in 2008. Segovia Partners, a brokerage firm with offices in Dallas, Chicago and Jupiter, Fla., negotiated the lease. The opening is slated for some time in 2026.