SAN ANTONIO — Fiesta Warehousing & Distribution Co. has signed a lease to occupy 315,000 square feet within Phase I of East Kelly Railport, a multi-modal industrial facility located in San Antonio. Fiesta will use the new facility, located at 302 Tayman, to expand its current operations. Terry Warth of CB Richard Ellis’s San Antonio office represented Fiesta in lease negotiations. Ron Mills with Santa Barbara Development Services represented the industrial park’s developer and owner, RREEF Real Estate. Phase I of East Kelly Railport, which was completed in March, comprises 360,000 square feet of industrial space. Phase II, which broke ground in May, will include 275,000 square feet of rail-served industrial space. Completion is expected in January 2009.
HOUSTON — NAI Houston has arranged the sale of a newly constructed, 13,300-square-foot warehouse/office building located at 4923 Cranswick In Houston. The speculative facility was sold by BRG Cornerstone Development & Construction LP, which was represented by Travis Land and John Ferruzzo of NAI Houston. Bo Petit and Conrad Bernard of Boyd Commercial represented the buyer, MHDH Properties. The acquisition price was undisclosed.
VICTORIA, BROWNWOOD AND COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS — Atlanta-based Apartment Realty Advisors (ARA) has completed the sales of three Texas multifamily communities. In Victoria, ARA brokered the sale of Towne Park Apartments, a 168-unit property located at 2107 N. Ben Jordan St. The community was 97 percent occupied at the time of closing. Property amenities include a swimming pool, a clubhouse, two tennis courts, laundry facilities and barbecue grills. Jeff Patterson and Jon Boone of ARA’s Austin, Texas, office represented the buyer, a private, Houston-based investor. The seller, a group of California-based investors, was represented by Ron Mazzola of San Diego-based Ron Mazzola Realty. In Brownwood, Patterson and Boone represented a locally based investor in the sale of Wayside Apartments, an 80-unit community located at 2001 Brady Ave. Fully occupied at the time of closing, the community includes a swimming pool, covered parking, 48 self-storage units, three laundry facilities and 24-hour maintenance. The property was acquired by a Mansfield, Texas-based investment group, which provided in-house representation in the transaction. Finally, in College Station, Patterson and Kelly Witherspoon of ARA’s Austin office represented a California-based seller in the disposition of Cedar Creek Condominiums, a 67-unit property located at 1000 University East near …
MISSOURI CITY, TEXAS — Construction had begun for Phase I of Lakeview Business Park, a 168-acre industrial park located in Missouri City. Phase I construction will consist of three buildings totaling 240,000 square feet; the buildings will range in size from 38,000 to 153,000 square feet. Each will feature 24- to 30-foot clear ceiling heights, ESFR sprinkler systems and concrete tiltwall construction. The project will also be applying for LEED certification. Upon full build-out, Lakeview Business Park will include approximately 2.5 million square feet of light industrial space. Phase I is scheduled for completion in February 2009. The project is being developed by a joint venture involving Dallas-based Trammell Crow Co. and its affiliate Crow Holdings. CB Richard Ellis is serving as exclusive listing agent for the industrial park.
ARLINGTON, TEXAS — Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.-based Ram has arranged the sale of a former Home Depot Landscape Supply Center, located at 5301 S. Cooper St. in Arlington, for $3.4 million. The property comprises a 12,383-square-foot building and an adjacent 25,890-square-foot outdoor landscape area. Casey Cummings of Ram, along with Mike Stevens of Steveco Commercial Real Estate Group, arranged the transaction. The property was acquired by Fort Worth, Texas-based North Texas Acquisition. The seller was undisclosed.
High construction costs and slow absorption have limited the amount of speculative office construction in most of El Paso, with the exception of medical developments near the new hospitals and surgical centers. The current trends are for highly efficient, high-profile buildings with plentiful parking and state-of-the-art amenities. Energy efficiency is also a high priority, but the cost of construction has delayed many plans to upgrade to better office space. The predominant areas of new development are concentrated on the peripheries of El Paso to the northeast, east and far west sides. The availability of large tracts of land and the immediate proximity to the highest population centers and employers are what is driving this development. On the east side, Sierra Providence Health Network is completing a new 110-bed, general acute-care hospital that opened at 3280 Joe Battle Boulevard at the beginning of June. A planned expansion will accommodate 290 beds. Adjacent to the hospital, Trammell Crow Company is developing a medical office building. The company is one of the newest and most aggressive office-specific developers to locate in El Paso. In the downtown market, Borderplex Community Trust is extremely aggressive and is active in acquiring downtown properties for redevelopment. Mills …
AUSTIN, TEXAS — The Austin office of Structura Inc. has joined with locally based companies L.M. Holder & Associates and Capital Commercial Investments for the renovation of the Perry-Brooks Building, located at the intersection of Eighth and Brazos in Austin. A new metal façade will be added to the brownstone building, along with a three-story curtain wall at ground level. The lobby will be redesigned with granite and abundant natural light. Each floor of the 12-story tower will be designed in a loft style, and will feature energy-efficient components. Structura is anticipating an EPA/Energy Star award for the project upon completion in early 2009.
DALLAS — Henry S. Miller Commercial (HSMC) is leading renovation efforts for the Adolphus Tower, a 27-story office tower located at 1412 Main St. in Dallas. The 181,235-square-foot building is located adjacent to the Adolphus Hotel, and the two buildings are connected directly. Upgrades to the office building will include remodeling, branding and leasing programs. LaWayne Schrader of HSMC‘s Dallas office will handle leasing efforts for the building, which currently has 78,624 square feet of vacant space. Rental rates for the building begin at $14 per square foot.
DALLAS — The Dallas office of Grubb & Ellis has brokered two Dallas office sales. In the first transaction, Steven Schneider of Grubb & Ellis, along with Jeff Price of Price Commercial Real Estate, arranged the sale of a 17,500-square-foot office property located at 4403 N. Central Expressway. Schneider and Price represented the seller, James P. Best. The property was acquired by Duwest 4403 Central LP for an undisclosed amount. In the second sale, Lee Wagner of Grubb & Ellis represented Hidalgo-Tynes in the purchase of an 8,750-square-foot office property located inside Lakes on Tennyson Professional Plaza. The property was sold by Golden Goose Properties Ltd. for an undisclosed price.
HOUSTON — Dallas-based Behringer Harvard has acquired One City Centre, a 31-story, Class A office tower located at 1021 Main St. in the central business district of Houston. The property contains 608,660 square feet of office space and two parking garages. It was 96 percent occupied at the time of closing. The Houston office of Holliday Fenoglio Fowler represented the seller, New York-based Broadway Real Estate Partners. The acquisition price was undisclosed.