EL PASO — The city of El Paso plans to tear down the old Northpark Mall for a new bus terminal and possible retail and condominium space. The city purchased the 23-acre property that includes the shopping center and its parking lot for $6 million. Located at 9530 Dyer, the mall opened in the 1960s with more than 50 stores. However, only Allstate Insurance, The Crystal Ballroom and Furniture Factory Warehouse remain in business today at the location.
PASADENA — East Belt Business Park, a four-building, 350,000-square-foot, Class A warehouse and distribution center, is completely leased. The development was constructed in two phases and completed in 2008 near the Port of Houston along the East Sam Houston Parkway South in Pasadena. Trammell Crow Co. and Morgan Stanley Prime Property Fund own the property. Faron Wiley of CB Richard Ellis assisted Trammell Crow in the following deals to complete its lease ups: Wrist USA for 68,833 square feet in Building 4; Doerle Food Service for 44,800 square feet in Building 2; Axion Logistics for 14,265 square feet in Building 1; and Airgas Southwest for 4,880 square feet in Building 1.
HOUSTON — The Khoshbin Company of Irvine, Calif. sold its Torrey Chase office portfolio in Houston in 2005 for $13.8 million. It has repurchased the portfolio, which consists of three office buildings making up 192,000 square feet, in 2010. Located near FM 1960 and Veterans Memorial Drive, the buildings are 56 percent occupied and were owned by CCMS 2005-CD1 Houston Offices. Khoshbin plans to renovate the property with upgrades to the lobbies and roofing.
AUSTIN — A $32 million data center has been completed on the campus of the University of Texas at Austin, a project approved by the UT board of regents in 2008. An existing facility was renovated for the state-of-the-art data center. It will house enterpise-wide services critical to students, faculty and staff, including Blackboard, WebSpace, UT Direct, e-mail, Web Central and all mainframe functions. The facility includes approximately 4,700 square feet of space for computing equipment.
SOUTHLAKE — School of Rock has leased a 7,525-square-foot space located at 3220 Southlake Blvd. in Southlake for its third Dallas-Ft. Worth location. The performance-based rock music school plans to open nine more schools in the Metroplex by 2013. Dean Tarpley, owner of School of Rock Southlake, also owns schools in Dallas and Frisco. Dan Harris of Dallas-based SRS Real Estate Partners represented School of Rock in the transaction, while James Keoughan of RE/MAX represented the landlord.
AUSTIN — Nalle Woods, a 238-unit, Class A multifamily community located at 4700 N. Capital of Texas Hwy. in Austin has changed hands. Austin-based Larry Peel & Co. sold the property to institutional investors advised by J.P. Morgan Asset Management – Global Real Assets for an undisclosed price. Nalle Woods offers one- and two-bedroom units with stainless steel appliances, granite countertops and vaulted ceilings. Amenities include a clubhouse, fitness center, swimming pools, business center, billiard room and spa. Bill Miller and Roberto Casas of Holliday Fenoglio Fowler's Dallas office represented the seller.
FORT HOOD — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has selected the Balfour Beatty | McCarthy joint venture, along with HKS Architects and Wingler & Sharp, to provide design-build services for the Fort Hood replacement hospital project. The $503 million, 944,000-square-foot facility will break ground in April 2011 and replace the 45-year-old Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center. The state-of-the-art healthcare facility will be completed in May 2014; and a majority of the design and construction budget will be funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
ROUND ROCK — Homewood Suites by Hilton has opened its 300th hotel in North America with the opening of its four-story, 115-suite hotel in Round Rock. Located at 2201 S. Mays St. directly off Interstate 35, it's the closest hotel to the world headquarters of Dell and is situated in a corporate campus area with many Fortune 500companies including Samsung, Texas Guaranteed, Sears Teletech, Teco Westinghouse and Dresser Wayne. The hotel is owned by VHRMR Round Rock, Ltd., managed by Vista Host, Inc., and its official grand opening will be held Thursday, Sept. 23.
HOUSTON — Doug Little has joined Transwestern's Houston headquarters as a managing director and executive vice president. He will help structure and execute strategic national initiatives while serving institutional clients throughout the nation. Prior to joining Transwestern, Little served as executive vice president and managing director of PM Realty's central division. He is a 25-year industry veteran.
DALLAS — The Perot Museum of Nature & Science, which broke ground last spring and is expected to open in early 2013 in Dallas' Victory Park as an expansion of The Museum of Nature & Science, has gained support from Houston-based PM Realty Group and Lyda Hill, philanthropist and owner of several commercial real estate buildings in Dallas. Hill's 2811 McKinney building, managed by PM Realty Group, in uptown Dallas has unveiled a mural measuring 80 feet wide by 22 feet tall celebrating the museum's expansion. The Perot Museum of Nature & Science at Victory Park was designed by the California architecture firm Morphosis.