HOUSTON — Occidental Petroleum Corp. has signed a 91,986-square-foot office lease expansion at Three Greenway Plaza in Houston. The energy giant now occupies more than 972,000 square feet at the 52-acre Greenway Plaza campus, which serves as its U.S. headquarters. Brandon Clarke, Charles Gordon, Steve Hesse and Ryan Roth of CBRE represented Occidental in the lease negotiations. Rima Soroka represented the landlord, Parkway, on an internal basis.
HOUSTON — LMI Capital, a Real Estate Capital Alliance (RECA) member, has arranged an $8 million bridge loan for the acquisition of a 150-unit apartment community in the Houston area. The loan was structured with an 80 percent loan-to-value ratio and 2.5 years of interest-only payments. The financing includes proceeds to fund a capital improvement program. Brandon Brown of LMI Capital placed the loan on behalf of the undisclosed borrower. The lender and property name were also not disclosed.
Retail landlords want to fill space, especially given that large gluts of it have been returned to market as store closures have accelerated, a move that has coincided with entertainment users that want to expand their footprints. But the logistics of bringing entertainment concepts into retail spaces — particularly vacated junior or big box spaces — are very complicated. This holds particularly true for entertainment concepts that involve movies and bowling. Ceiling heights and column spacing, for example, prevent many spaces from being repurposed cost-effectively for entertainment uses like bowling alleys and theaters. In addition, lease terms for these deals are often based on traditional retail metrics like sales per square foot. According to Howard Samuels, president of California-based advisory and brokerage firm Samuels & Co., there is a strong disconnect between entertainment uses and conventional retail real estate that has yet to fully integrate experiential uses or “location-based entertainment (LBE).” “Entertainment retail as a backfiller of boxes is a misnomer,” says Samuels, whose firm specializes in entertainment transactions. “Those users typically don’t want fixed walls and need higher ceiling heights. Most location-based entertainment concepts are very challenging to design, develop, open and operate. These concepts have very specific criteria …
CHICAGO AND DALLAS — Cushman & Wakefield has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Pinnacle Property Management Services LLC, a Dallas-based apartment management firm. With more than 169,000 units across 839 properties in its operational portfolio, Pinnacle is the third-largest multifamily property management firm in the United States. The firm’s client list includes institutional, private and foreign investors; financial institutions; pension funds; private partnerships; sole owners; and government housing groups. The acquisition will boost Chicago-based Cushman & Wakefield’s management division across 20 key U.S. markets, increasing its overall portfolio to 869 million square feet in North and South America. Rick Graf, president and CEO of Pinnacle, will lead the Americas Multifamily Property Management platform for Cushman & Wakefield. The acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions, including antitrust approvals.
PLANO, TEXAS — High Street Residential and Principal Real Estate Investors have sold The Kincaid at Legacy, a 25-story upscale apartment tower located at 7200 Dallas Parkway in Plano. Boston-based Intercontinental Real Estate Corp. purchased the 300-unit high-rise for an undisclosed price. CBRE represented the sellers in the transaction. Built in 2018, Kincaid at Legacy offers one-, two- and three-bedroom units that range in size from 677 to 4,500 square feet. The property features 14,500 square feet of amenity space, including a resort-style pool, water features, fire pits, fitness center, resident lounge with media screening room, entertainment kitchen, conference rooms, business center, complimentary Wi-Fi, bike storage, concierge services and an amenity deck on the seventh floor with a second pool and two dog parks. In 2016, Intercontinental bought the adjoining Legacy Tower office building from Trammell Crow Co., parent company of High Street Residential.
HOUSTON — JLL has arranged the sale of 2900 Weslayan, a six-story boutique office building located at the corner of Weslayan and West Alabama streets in Houston’s Greenway Plaza submarket. Houston-based Griffin Partners, using its investment vehicle Griffin Partners Office Fund III, purchased the 136,698-square-foot office building from Madison Marquette. Dan Miller and Katherine Miller of JLL represented the seller in the transaction. The office building was nearly 82 percent leased at the time of sale, including to retailers Baggy’s Grill, Apteek Pharmacy and Results Physiotherapy. Wally Reid, Cameron Cureton and John Ream, also with JLL, secured a three-year, floating-rate acquisition loan through Frost Bank on behalf of Griffin Partners. Janie Snider and Lee Moreland of Griffin Partners will manage 2900 Weslayan internally. The new ownership has retained Madison Marquette to lease the property.
TERRELL, TEXAS — Dougherty Mortgage has provided a $35 million construction loan for Crossroads at Terrell, a 270-unit, garden-style apartment community planned for a 10.5-acre site in the east Dallas suburb of Terrell. Dougherty’s Fort Worth office closed the HUD 221(d)(4) loan on behalf of the borrower and developer, an entity doing business as Terrell MF Ventures LLC. The loan features a 40-year term and 40-year amortization schedule. The Class A community will feature a package center, resort-style pool, fire pit, outdoor cooking, business center, clubhouse with kitchen, game room, fitness center, bicycle storage, dog park and a pet spa. The developer plans to build Crossroads at Terrell to National Green Building Bronze standards. The 221(d)(4) product is HUD’s flagship loan program financing the construction and redevelopment of market-rate and affordable housing apartment communities. Details about the project’s construction timeline were not disclosed.
STAFFORD, TEXAS — The Philipsborn Co., a Chicago-based mortgage banking firm, has arranged a $4 million loan for the refinancing of a distribution center located at 4030 Bluebonnet Drive in Stafford, about 15 miles southwest of Houston. Built in 1983, the 66,336-square-foot warehouse is situated on 4.1 acres and features 24- to 26-foot clear heights, four exterior loading docks, nearly 10,000 square feet of finished office space and 2,628 square feet of refrigerated space. The facility is leased on a long-term basis to a national specialty food distributor. David Kubert of Philipsborn arranged the 15-year, fixed-rate loan through Ameritas Life Insurance Co. on behalf of the borrower, a private investor.
MIDLOTHIAN, TEXAS — Locally based developer Hanover Property Co. has acquired 966 acres in the southern Dallas suburb of Midlothian for the development of a $950 million master-planned community. Current plans call for 2,000 single-family homes, 26 acres of commercial space and 42 acres of industrial space. Pre-development is underway, and the initial phase is expected to be complete in early 2022. Michael Swaldi, Larry McCorkle and Nick Hayden of JLL represented the seller, ECOM Real Estate, in the transaction. Paul Whitman, also with JLL, represented Hanover Property Co.
HOUSTON — Premier Tower LP will renovate Commerce Towers, a 25-story residential building located at 914 Main St. in downtown Houston. Originally built in 1928, the property features 140 condominiums for sale. Renovations will involve upgrades to the lobby and amenity spaces, including the pool deck, fitness center and party rooms, as well as exterior renovations to preserve the historic appeal of the building. The project team for the renovation was not disclosed.