MISSOURI CITY, TEXAS — Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) will open a 1 million-square-foot fulfillment center in Missouri City, a southwestern suburb of Houston, in a move that is expected to create about 500 new full-time jobs. The location of the facility, which is expected to open some time in 2021, was not disclosed. Since 2010, Amazon has created more than 43,000 jobs in Texas and invested more than $16.9 billion across the state, including infrastructure and compensation to its employees.
DALLAS AND HOUSTON — Global investment firm KKR (NYSE: KKR) has acquired a 1.8 million-square-foot industrial portfolio in Dallas and Houston for $171 million. The portfolio consists of two fulfillment and distribution centers, one in each market, that were both fully leased to two different investment-grade tenants on a long-term basis at the time of sale. Houston-based Hines developed and sold the assets, which have an average construction vintage of 2019. KKR now owns more than 20 million square feet of industrial real estate throughout the United States.
WACO, TEXAS — Envases Group, a Mexico-based provider of aluminum cans, will open a 450,000-square-foot manufacturing and distribution facility in Waco. Operations at the facility are expected to create about 120 full-time jobs, with another 500 or so jobs to be created through construction and indirect uses such as building maintenance and product distribution. The Waco operation will focus on aluminum beverage containers commonly used for soft drinks, beers, energy drinks, teas and non-carbonated beverages. Completion is slated for late 2021. Founded in 1993, Envases Group owns and operates 56 plants, three sales offices and seven distribution centers in Europe, Asia and the Americas.
ELMHURST, ILL. — World Wholesale Inc., a distributor for convenience stores, has signed a 27,523-square-foot industrial lease at 845 N. Larch Ave. in Elmhurst. The recently constructed property, situated near the Chicago O’Hare International Airport, is now fully occupied. Christopher Lydon and Ryan Hanley of Avison Young represented the owner, Alpha Industrial Properties, in the lease transaction. Brian Colson and Brian Pomorski of Avison Young represented the tenant.
TOLEDO, OHIO — Reichle Klein Group has arranged the sale of a 65,200-square-foot industrial facility in Toledo for $1.8 million. The property sits on 2.7 acres at 0 Water St. Jerry Malek of Reichle Klein represented the seller, Norfolk Southern Railway Co. Downtown Toledo Development Corp. purchased the asset.
APOPKA, FLA. — JLL has arranged the $71.5 million sale of a 289,839-square-foot industrial facility in Apopka. The property is situated within the 180-acre Mid-Florida Logistics Park, 20 miles northwest of downtown Orlando. The seller, BlueScope Properties Group, delivered the asset in July on a build-to-suit basis for an undisclosed beverage company. The asset features 36-foot clear heights, ESFR sprinklers, LED lighting, cold storage capacity with space for 6,200 pallets, five cold dock doors and 10 dry dock doors. John Huguenard, Sean Devaney, Julia Silva, Luis Castillo, Brian Walsh and Keith Largay of JLL represented the seller in the transaction. Realty Income Corp. acquired the property.
NEW CANEY, TEXAS — Lowe’s (NYSE: LOW) will open a 1.5 million-square-foot distribution center on the northern outskirts of Houston, creating about 200 jobs in the process, according to reports from multiple news outlets including Community Impact Newspaper and the Houston Business Journal. According to the former publication, the home improvement retailer’s new center will be located along Gene Campbell Road in New Caney at the East Montgomery County Improvement District’s industrial park. Local ABC affiliate abc13.com also reports that the facility is expected to open in July and represents approximately $65 million in public and private capital investment. The stock price of Lowe’s opened at $151.99 per share on Friday, Dec. 3, up from $115 per share a year ago.
PASADENA, TEXAS — Third-party logistics firm Dunavant Distribution Group has signed a 784,000-square-foot industrial lease at Bay Area Business Park in the eastern Houston metro of Pasadena. John Nicholson of Colliers represented the tenant in the lease negotiations. Justin Robinson and Jeff Pate of Stream Realty Partners represented the landlord, PEPF Red Bluff. The three-building property is located near Port Houston and recently underwent an expansion to become the largest single-owner industrial business park in Houston, according to the brokerage team.
INDIANA, MISSOURI, OKLAHOMA AND GEORGIA — Stan Johnson Co. has brokered the sale of a four-property industrial portfolio totaling approximately 1.9 million square feet across four markets. The sales price was undisclosed. The properties are leased to a mix of public and private tenants. The buildings include: 2001 Commerce Parkway in Franklin, Ind.; 65 Corporate Woods Drive in Bridgeton, Mo.; 524 N. Sara Road in Yukon, Okla.; and 6878 Kelly Ave. in Morrow, Ga. Mollie Alteri, Joey Odom, Mike Sladich, Maggie Holmes and Michael Watson of Stan Johnson represented the seller, an institutional advisor based in New York. The buyer was a Dallas-based institutional investor.
ST. LOUIS — Contractor Clayco has launched a new subsidiary known as Clayco Design & Engineering. The addition will enhance the company’s design-build service offering and diversify its capabilities for building manufacturing, process and food and beverage plants. Based in St. Louis, Clayco Design & Engineering is led by David Mills, a former partner at The Design Group. Mills is responsible for strategy and innovation, new business development and recruiting top talent. Joe Crawford, formerly with the process technologies division of AECOM, will serve as director of operations.