AUSTIN, TEXAS — Baceline Investments LLC, a Denver-based boutique real estate investment firm, has acquired Dakota Plaza, a 21,700-square-foot retail center in Austin, for $4.2 million. The property, which was built in 2006 and is located at 8516 Anderson Mill Road, was acquired in conjunction with shopping centers in Milwaukee, Louisville, Ky., and Maybrook, Ill.
The Austin apartment market is currently experiencing significant growth. Increasing demand is driving more intensive development and developers are addressing tenants’ desire for a better experience. The result is the development of communities that capitalize on space to the fullest extent. Architects are providing extremely detailed designs of common area “living experiences” before properties are constructed. Examples of such designs include the final positioning of equipment in fitness centers, pool/cabana layouts, rooftop lounges and Zen gardens that are thoughtfully and efficiently planned to maximize the effect while being cost-conscious. The importance of garage layouts and identifying necessary parking needed has increased as we become more dependent on ride-sharing services like Uber and Lyft, as well as Lime and Bird scooters to move around the city. Job, Population Growth The key to the success of new developments and long-term investments is the ongoing population and job growth, future projections of which remain extremely positive. Austin enjoys a prime age (25 to 34) rental percentage that reportedly exceeds 30 percent, approximately 44 percent higher than the national average of 20.9 percent. Additionally, we must take into consideration locals opting to move from single-family homes to rental communities in favor of more services …
AUSTIN, TEXAS — California-based Arrimus Capital has acquired Villas on 26th, a 182-bed student housing property serving the University of Texas at Austin. The seller, Texas-based Zucker Properties, developed the community in 2014, delivering 49 units in various formats from studio to six-bed residences. Each unit features granite countertops, walk-in closets and built-in washers and dryers. Communal amenities include a pool-sized hot tub, 24-hour fitness center and an outdoor lounge with TVs and stereo. The deal marks Arrimus Capital’s seventh student housing acquisition since 2017, yielding a $320 million portfolio spanning 3,894 beds.
DALLAS — Marcus & Millichap has brokered the sale of Enchanted Hills, a 229-unit multifamily community situated on 11.7 acres in Dallas. The property was built in 1964 and has a land use restrictive agreement attached to it. Floor plans include one-, two- and three-bedroom units and amenities include a pool and a playground. Al Silva and Ford Braly of Marcus & Millichap represented the seller, a local private investor that owned the property for 22 years, in the sale. The duo also secured the buyer, a Dallas-based investment group.
HOUSTON — Life Time Inc., an owner-operator of health clubs across the country, will bring a 56,000-square-foot athletic facility and 38,000-square-foot coworking space to GreenStreet, an office and retail property in downtown Houston by local developer Midway. The facility will be located at 1201 Main St. and will offer two floors featuring a range of health and wellness amenities combined with coworking space. The opening is scheduled for 2020.
PASADENA, TEXAS — NAI Partners has negotiated a 25,695-square-foot retail lease at 1222 S. Shaver St. in Pasadena, a southeastern suburb of Houston. Lesley Rice and Andy Parrish of NAI Partners represented the landlord in the lease negotiations. Chris Holder, also with NAI Partners, represented the tenant, Crazy Boss, which expects to open 10 additional stores over the next two to three years.
IRVING, TEXAS — Stumpy’s Hatchet House, an entertainment concept centered on throwing axes, will open a 7,500-square-foot venue at Toyota Music Factory in Irving. The location will be the company’s first in DFW and 23rd in the country. Construction of the space is scheduled to begin in April. North Carolina-based developer ARK Group owns Toyota Music Factory.
AUSTIN, TEXAS — Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN) will expand its Austin Tech Hub and create 800 new jobs by 2020, the company announced today. The tech giant will move into a 145,000-square-foot office space within The Domain, a 304-acre mixed-use development by Austin-based Endeavor Real Estate Group. Dallas-based TIER REIT is the project partner behind The Domain’s office buildings, which will eventually total 2.1 million square feet of Class A space. Amazon’s space will be housed within Domain 10, a 15-story, 299,673-square-foot building. The Austin Tech Hub is one of 17 such North American facilities operated by Amazon. More than 20,000 people are employed across the 17 hubs; Austin employees focus mainly on developing Amazon Web Services (AWS), Amazon Business, Amazon devices, video game designing and advertising. Amazon already employs approximately 6,600 workers in the Austin area. This employee base includes more than 1,000 corporate-level employees, 3,000 employees in the nearby San Marcos warehouses and 2,600 workers through Whole Foods, according to The Austin American-Statesman. Amazon has created more than 22,000 jobs in Texas since 2011, including more than 1,000 in the past four years, according to Terry Leeper, general manager of Amazon’s Austin Tech Hub. During that same period, the …
HOUSTON — A partnership between Houston-based DC Partners and China-based Tianqing Real Estate Development is underway on The Allen, a $454 million mixed-use project located near downtown Houston. According to the project website, The Allen will include five towers offering 300,000 square feet of office space, 165 hotel rooms, 99 for-sale condominiums and an unspecified amount of retail space. HOK is designing the project, Phase I construction of which began during the fourth quarter of 2018.
KYLE, TEXAS — South Korea-based ENF Technology Co., Ltd., a leading provider of electronic materials to Samsung and the U.S. high-tech market, will build a $45 million headquarters and advanced manufacturing facility in Kyle, about 20 miles south of downtown Austin. The 100,000-square-foot facility, construction of which is expected to be complete in 2020, will be situated on 25 acres within the Plum Creek master-planned community. The company expects to hire 45 to 50 new workers in the short term and could expand to 80 employees in the future. ENF’s facility will also serve large tech firms like Micron, Texas Instruments and Intel. Jerry Heare, SIOR at Austin-based Commercial Industrial Properties, represented ENF in the site selection.