AUSTIN — Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services has brokered the sale of Mi Casa, a 64-unit multifamily property at 7200 Duval St. in Austin. J. Patrick Burke and Kent Myers represented the seller, a private investor. The units in Mi Casa range from 415 square feet to 1,183 square feet.
ARLINGTON — SkyWalker Property Partners is investing $250,000 into Phase I of the renovation of Cordovan Park, a two-building office property at 5850 W. Interstate 20 in Arlington. Cordovan Park spans 78,550 square feet and is managed by Cheryl Zellers of SCM Real Estate, an affiliate of SkyWalker Property Partners. The space is currently 70 percent leased to tenants like Arrow Child & Family Ministries.
DALLAS — Dallas-based Cypress Equities has secured a combined $187 million in loans for three retail properties in North Carolina, South Carolina and Texas. Carlyle/Cypress West 7th, LLP, a partnership with The Carlyle Group and Cypress, secured a $98 million bridge loan through GE Capital Real Estate for West 7th, a 660,865-square-foot mixed-use development in Fort Worth. The mixed-use development includes 254,107 square feet of first floor restaurant space, 103,220 square feet of Class A office space and 345 residential units. Proceeds from the bridge loan are refinancing existing construction loans from eight lenders. The 3-year, adjustable rate loan will go toward paying for future tenant improvement costs and leasing commissions.
COPPELL — Scentsy, Inc., a home fragrance company, is planning on opening a new 150,000-square-foot distribution center in Coppell. Scentsy plans to lease the space for its operations and the center is slated to open this month. The expansion is expected to add 190 new jobs, and the center is expected to handle approximately 27 percent of its U.S. orders.
PORT ARTHUR — Walker & Dunlop has provided a $5.97 million loan under the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Section 223 (a)(7) program for Pebble Creek Apartments, a 208-unit garden style apartment complex in Port Arthur. The apartment complex features a swimming pool, playground and laundry center, and is currently 95 percent leased. Walker & Dunlop's Carolyn McMullen provided the loan for the borrower, The Itex Group, based on a 37-year term and a 37-year amortization schedule.
PEARLAND — Holliday Fenoglio Fowler (HFF) has arranged a $3.7 million refinancing for Cullen Crossing, a 34,730-square-foot retail center at 8321 Broadway St. in Pearland, a suburb of Houston. Cullen Crossing is 94 percent leased to tenants Hallmark, Comcast Cable, Wingstop and Subway, and it features two pad sites occupied by Wells Fargo and McDonald's. HFF's Travis Anderson arranged the 10-year, fixed-rate loan with American United Life Insurance Co. on behalf of Cencor Realty Services.
SAN ANTONIO — Dallas-based Crow Holdings Capital Partners has purchased Quarry Village, a 10.7-acre mixed-use development in San Antonio. Quarry Village is San Antonio's first urban main street development and includes The Artessa, a 280-unit apartment community, and a 70,785-square-foot retail development. Holliday Fenoglio Fowler's Craig LaFollette represented the seller, San Antonio-based Embrey Partners, and equity partner Nationwide Insurance in the transaction. The Artessa features a 6,700-square-foot clubhouse, demonstration/catering kitchen, a climate-controlled wine-tasting room, public terraces, a multi-level bocce ball courtyard, two pools, two five-story parking garages and 46,000 square feet of balcony space. The retail portion includes tenants AMAR Cosmetics, Ann's Nails, Avant Salon/Spa, Clear Communications, EyeMasters, Five Guys, Jamba Juice, Max's Wine Dive, Nancy's Boutique, Nest Modern, New Balance, Red Mango, South Texas Saddlery, Starbucks, The Shoe Club and Urban Taco.
DALLAS — Greensboro, N.C.-based Bell Partners Inc. has purchased The Ansley at Park Central Apartments, a 490-unit luxury apartment community that consists of midrise, townhome and garden-style apartments in Dallas, for $51.5 million. The Ansley also features 14,500 square feet of retail space and is currently 96 percent occupied. Bell Partners' purchase of The Ansley, along with a purchase of a Nashville apartment community called 1700 Midtown Apartments, is the first purchase for its Bell Fund IV.
LEWISVILLE — American National Bank has sold a 2.67-acre retail tract on the corner of Bellaire Boulevard and Oakwood Lane in Lewisville. Bradford Commercial Real Estate Services' Karen Simon and Brian Scott represented American National Bank, while Sonny Chung of Beam Real Estate represented the buyer, Nam Nguyen.
The market for soft and hard goods remains somewhat weak due to uncertainty in the economy and labor market (although the Houston job market is generally stronger than the rest of the country). However, in the last several months, many big boxes that went dark due to bankruptcies and/or downsizing have been absorbed, either in the totality or because of the lack of 50,000-square-foot tenants in the market. Landlords have had to get creative and divide larger spaces to accommodate smaller tenants. Generally, the most active tenants in this arena have been health clubs, discount stores, dollar stores and non-traditional retailers. Landlords, eager to fill dark spaces, are making very aggressive deals (low base rents, extra tenant allowances, more free rent, etc.). On the other hand, fast casual (FC), quick-serve restaurants (QSRs) and casual dining remains robust. As such, many companies are aggressively seeking locations in Houston. It has been increasingly difficult to find locations that can accommodate FC, QSR’s (especially users with a drive-thru) and casual dining needs because quality locations have become scarce and parking requirements can’t be adequately met. Alternatively, fine dining has been spotty with good thru-puts but lower average checks. Many restaurateurs have been reluctant …
