This Week's Houston Deal Sheet
Discovery Point Child Development Centers is launching an aggressive expansion across Texas, starting with the Houston area.
The brand wants to start its growth in The Woodlands and open at least 10 centers in and around Houston and 60 across the state. Katy and Cypress are also on the short list across the Houston metro. The challenge is land; Discovery Point wants to own the sites under its centers. It’s seeking franchise partners and hopes to open its first Houston-area center by year-end.
SALES
An undisclosed buyer purchased Hawthorne Square, a 15k SF retail property. Marcus & Millichap’s Justin Miller and Derek Hargrove brokered. The property is anchored by Starbucks and is directly across the street from Hanover’s new high-rise apartment on Montrose.
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An undisclosed buyer purchased 3.9 acres at 15645 Westpark Dr. Retail Solutions’ Adam Manesh and Lyle Cowand repped the seller.
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An undisclosed private investor purchased 3229 Navigation Blvd, a 21k SF office/warehouse property. Moody Rambin’s Jim Autenreith and Dan Nguyen repped the seller, and Property Brokerage of Texas’ James Womack repped the buyer.
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SSR Holdings purchased 1414 Sakowitz, a 46k SF distribution facility. NAI Partners’ John Ferruzzo and Chris Kugle repped the seller, and Lee & Associates’ Robert McGee repped the buyer.
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Fan favorite The Halal Guys is entering the Houston market with a 1,483 SF restaurant at 3821 Farnham St. Transwestern’s Chris Reyes and Danielle Schidlowski repped the tenant. The brand started as a wildly popular New York City street cart in 1990 and is now opening restaurants across the country. The Halal Guys plan to open several Houston stores over the next few years.
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Jackson Gilmour & Dobbs leased 14k SF at 515 Post Oak. NAI Partners' Dan Boyles and Liz Westcott-Brown repped the tenant, and Stream's Paul Coonrod and Brad Fricks repped landlord Columbia Property Trust.
DEVELOPMENT
Skybox Datacenters and NRG Energy celebrated the grand opening of Skybox Houston One, a 96k SF data center in the Energy Corridor. Besides providing renewable wind electricity to the facility, NRG signed a long-term lease for a unique private data hall. Skybox aims to operate with 100% green energy, and the property also has a solar array and a full hot aisle containment deployment to boost efficiency.
FINANCING
LMI Capital’s Kurt Dennis arranged $8.5M in acquisition financing for two Houston-area shopping centers. The Class-A strip centers average 30k SF in Spring and Cypress. Both loans were placed with banks at 4.5% fixed interest. Notably, the first transaction closed within 26 days.
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NorthMarq’s John Burke arranged an $8M interest-only, fixed-rate loan for an office/retail property on Broadway (FM 518) in Pearland. It was arranged through a life insurance company. Pearland’s been hot lately; John says it grew 142% from 2000 to 2010, the 15th fastest-growing city in the US in that time period.
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LMI Capital’s Jamie Safier procured acquisition financing for a two-phase multifamily complex in Galveston that included a historic building. The loan represented 84% of the purchase price and a five-year fixed term with one year of interest only. The borrower was a first-time commercial real estate buyer and will use some of the funds for renovations.
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LMI Capital’s Brandon Brown originated a $7M multifamily acquisition for a 300-unit community in West Houston. The buyer assumed an agency loan and simultaneously closed a supplemental loan.
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HFF’s Mike Tepedino, Michael Gigliotti and Cameron Cureton arranged $248M to refinance a 20-property retail portfolio spanning 2.1M SF in Houston, Dallas and San Antonio. Borrower Global Fund Investments received a long-term fixed-rate loan with TIAA-CREF. The portfolio is 95% leased to 414 tenants; 12 of the properties are in the Houston metro.
