HOUSTON — Baker Katz has purchased a 40,000-square-foot site in Houston that includes an existing 12,000-square-foot building occupied by Foodarama, a Texas supermarket chain. The property is located in the Houston neighborhood of Timbergrove, which is adjacent to Houston Heights.
DALLAS — Marcus & Millichap has arranged the sale of Zora Lee, an eight-unit apartment property located in the Old East Dallas neighborhood. Nick Fluellen and Bard Hoover of Marcus & Millichap’s Dallas office marketed the property on behalf of the seller, a limited liability company. Fluellen and Hoover also procured the buyer, an individual/personal trust. Zora Lee is located at 4831 Junius St. Built in 1923, the historic property is five miles northeast of the Dallas central business district.
ATLANTA — Cousins Properties (NYSE: CUZ) and Parkway Properties (NYSE: PKY) have agreed to a $1.95 billion stock-for-stock merger. The deal will simultaneously spin off of both companies’ Houston-based assets, creating a new publicly traded REIT called HoustonCo. The combined company will operate under the Cousins Properties name and continue to own Class A office towers in Sun Belt markets. The combined portfolio will include 41 properties totaling 15.8 million square feet of space in Atlanta; Austin, Texas; Charlotte, N.C.; Phoenix; and Orlando and Tampa, Fla. Although Parkway currently owns properties in Jacksonville, Fla., a Cousins investor presentation about the merger implied those buildings will be sold. Under the agreement, Parkway shareholders will receive 1.63 shares of Cousins stock for each share of Parkway stock they own. The combined company will create HoustonCo via a special dividend distributed to its shareholders once the merger is complete. Jim Heistand, Parkway’s CEO, will head HoustonCo after the spin-off. Cousins and Parkway shareholders will own about 52 percent and 48 percent, respectively, of both Cousins and HoustonCo. Both companies’ boards of directors approved the transactions unanimously. Affiliates of TPG, which own about 21 percent of Parkway’s outstanding common stock, have also agreed to …
WACO, TEXAS — Metropolitan Capital Advisors has arranged a $1 million fixed-rate senior mortgage for a 4,384-square-foot restaurant in Waco. Twisted Root Burger Co. occupies 100 percent of the building, which fronts I-35 adjacent to Baylor University. The loan includes a 4.3 percent interest rate with a 25-year amortization schedule. The sponsor recently executed a 15-year triple net lease for the property with Twisted Root Burger Co. Twisted Root is the first of three restaurant concepts created by Jason Boso and Quincy Hart. Their flagship location in Dallas opened in late 2005 in the Deep Ellum District. Boso and Hart later appeared on Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives with Guy Fieri, and they’ve since opened 11 other stores over the last eight years.
DALLAS — Lee & Associates has negotiated the sale of a 26,000-square-foot industrial building located at 11281 Indian Trail in Dallas. Adam Graham and Ken Wesson of Lee & Associates Dallas/Fort Worth office represented the seller, EastGroup Properties, in the transaction. Jim Svidron with NAI Robert Lynn represented the buyer, Abdul Khan.
DALLAS — Jordan & Skala Engineers Inc. has renewed and expanded its office lease to a total of 16,107 square feet in Briargrove Place. The property is located at 17855 N. Dallas Parkway in Dallas. Emily Hoffman with Cushman & Wakefield represented Jordan & Skala Engineers in the transaction.
GARLAND, TEXAS — The Silver Group has brokered the sale of a single-tenant O’Reilly Auto Parts retail store located at 5550 Lavon Drive in Garland. The property consists of a newly constructed 6,800-square-foot retail building on a one-acre parcel of land along State Highway 78 just north of the Firewheel Town Center. O’Reilly is situated between a CVS/Pharmacy and Firestone Tire, near the intersection of Bunker Hill Road. The lease includes a 15-year term with periodic rental increases. Greg Cunha of The Silver Group was the only broker involved in the transaction. The buyer and seller were unnamed.
ARLINGTON, TEXAS — The Vitorino Group has negotiated the sale of a Dunkin’ Donuts ground lease in Arlington. The prior building on the property, a City of Arlington fire station, was razed and a portion was ground leased to Star Dunkin’ LP, an entity controlled by Jerry Jones and Troy Aikman. Located on Cooper Street, the property was built in 2014 and was secured by a 15-year net lease, which included a guaranty from the parent company. The offering was sold to an out-of state buyer from the West Coast. The Vitorino Group cooperated with an outside agent from Colorado. The buyer utilized a 1031 tax-deferred exchange.
THE WOODLANDS, TEXAS — The Westin at The Woodlands hotel is now open. Developed, managed and owned by The Howard Hughes Corp., the Waterway Square district anchor is the first Westin in The Woodlands master planned community and the 50th Starwood hotel in Texas. The hotel features 302 guestrooms, with interiors designed by Dallas-based waldrop+nichols studio. Boston-based Elkus Manfredi Architects and the Houston office of Gensler designed the 13-story hotel’s exterior.
FORT WORTH, TEXAS — Amazon has leased 318,488 square feet of industrial space at 4601 Gold Spike Drive in Fort Worth. The space is located within the Railhead Industrial Park. CBRE’s Ryan Keiser represented Amazon in the transaction, while Holt Lunsford Commercial’s Donnie Rohde and Matt Carthey represented the owner, Prologis.
