BAYTOWN, TEXAS — Aries Capital has arranged an $8.9 million loan for the Holiday Inn Express in Baytown. The property opened in April and is located at 7515 Garth Road across the bay from Houston. Rushi Shah of Aries’ Chicago office arranged the non-recourse, 10-year loan on behalf of the borrower, Pride Management. The loan replaces an existing full recourse, bank-constructed loan.
SAN ANTONIO — BMC Capital has arranged a $1.1 million purchase loan for an apartment complex in San Antonio. The 10-year loan was cross-collateralized on two properties at a 65 percent loan-to-value ratio, with a 4.9 percent interest rate and 30-year amortization schedule. The loan was arranged through one of BMC’s correspondent banking relationships. Brian Gramlich of BMC Capital’s Dallas office arranged the loan.
AUSTIN, TEXAS — Trulan Property Advisors has arranged the sale of a three-tenant, 5,780-square-foot strip center in Austin. The property is located at 7709 E. Ben White Blvd. at the entrance of the MetCenter mixed-use business park. A Starbucks anchors the fully occupied center, which was sold to an out-of-state investor. Jason Middlebrook of Trulan represented the unnamed seller in the transaction. Ryan Hoff with Retail Solutions represented the buyer.
WICHITA FALLS, TEXAS — Marcus & Millichap has arranged the sale of The Timbers and Heritage House, a 228-unit apartment portfolio located in Wichita Falls. Michael Ware and William Jarnagin of Marcus & Millichap’s Dallas office marketed the property on behalf of the seller, a private investor. Ware and Jarnagin also procured the buyer, another private investor. The Timbers is located at 504 Kemp Blvd. and Heritage House is located at 500 Fillmore St. Both properties are just south of Seymour Highway near Midwestern State University and Sheppard Air Force Base. The Timbers was built in 1963 and sits on 2.7 acres. The property consists of one- and two-bedroom units. Heritage House was built in 1972 and sits on four acres. The property consists of efficiency, one- and two-bedroom units. The properties had a combined occupancy rate of 92 percent at the time of sale.
WACO, TEXAS — Construction has begun on the 70,000-square-foot, 81-unit Heartis Waco Assistant Living & Memory Care Community. The development is scheduled for completion in late 2015. Caddis, a national healthcare real estate firm, owns and is developing the project. Frontier Management will manage the property. Heartis Waco is the second of three Heartis communities under development that will be managed by Frontier. The development will be located on five acres at Speegleville Road north of U.S. Highway 84. Katus LLC is the project’s architect and General Contractor Ltd. is the contractor. American National Bank of Texas provided debt financing for the project.
FORT WORTH, TEXAS — Simon and Cassco Development Co. will develop the first phase of retail on the Edwards Ranch into a 500,000-square-foot shopping center. The Shops at Clearfork will include 100 specialty stores, a movie theater and restaurants. Neiman Marcus will anchor the shopping center, which will span 90,000 square feet across two stories. Construction will start in the spring of 2015 and be completed in February 2017. The Shops at Clearfork is part of a larger 270-acre master plan for Clearfork.
CEDAR HILL, TEXAS — HFF has arranged the $38.3 million refinancing of Uptown Village at Cedar Hill, a 615,000-square-foot lifestyle center in Cedar Hill. HFF worked on behalf of Trademark Property Co. to place a three-year, floating-rate loan with Aareal Capital Corp. Uptown Village at Cedar Hill is located at 305 W. Farm to Market Road 1382 at the J. Elmer Weaver Freeway. The shopping, dining and entertainment center features a water fountain, electric vehicle charging station, children’s play area and an oversized chess and checker board. Live acts play at the center’s Village Green Stage. The center was completed in 2008 and includes more than 70 retail stores including Dillard’s, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Barnes & Noble, Ulta, Chico’s, Victoria’s Secret, Charming Charlie and Foot Locker. Jim Curtin, Trey Morsbach, Judy Boyd and Brad Greenway led HFF’s team representing the borrower.
AUSTIN, TEXAS — ATCO Properties & Management has acquired 1300 Guadalupe St. in downtown Austin, and has sold the Crossroads Center for an undisclosed amount. The property at 1300 Guadalupe is a fully occupied, 45,000-square-foot commercial office building located two blocks west of the Texas State Capitol. The property includes tenants such as projekt 202, Snow Software, Noack Little Architecture and Honeywell International Inc. ATCO has also closed on the sale of the 100,000-square-foot Crossroads Center. Steve Durhman of Durhman and Bassett represented the buyer, Jay Kaplan. The property is 96 percent occupied by tenants including Chili’s, West Marine, Pluckers Wing Bar, Make It Sweet, Subway and Cycle Gear.
ALLEN, TEXAS — Cassidy Turley has arranged a lease renewal for State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co.’s 62,791-square-foot office space at Allen Station in Allen. Randy Cooper and Craig Wilson of Cassidy Turley represented State Farm in the transaction. John Hendricks and Wilson Brown of CBRE represented the landlord, LIT Finance LP. Allen Station is located at 381 E. Exchange Parkway and spans 220,326 square feet. State Farm has occupied the building since 2004. Allen Station was built in 2001 and is located just east of U.S. Highway 75 on the north side of Exchange Parkway.
Greater Waco’s economy is on a roll. Positioned halfway between Dallas and Austin, Waco is a prime destination for companies and individuals that want access to large metro areas without the hassles of traffic, expensive real estate and labor shortages. With newly completed facilities, such as Baylor University’s McLane Stadium and major downtown redevelopment projects, Waco is hitting the radar for new development opportunities. September 2014 marked 26 months of positive economic growth for the area, with 6.2 percent growth in the third quarter of 2014 alone. Major players, including Baylor, have played a tremendous role in elevating the status of Waco as a dominant player in the Central Texas region. Just as Texas has seen significant growth since 2008, so too has Waco. One major contributor to Waco’s economic success has been employment growth. Employers are creating new jobs in the area, with 1,500 more positions now in place, 108,200 compared to 106,700 in September 2013. Construction, manufacturing, healthcare, hospitality and logistics remain strong drivers for the economy. The result is a community with a 5 percent unemployment rate and residents with more disposable income. Retail Developers Step Up Spending was up 5.1 percent through the first nine months …
