Another Deal Sheet!
Hoping to capitalize on the CBD’s 96% office occupancy rate, Crescent announced it’s going forward with development of 6 Houston Center. And it just may be the best Houston Center building yet. (Just don't tell the others... a parent isn't supposed to have a favorite.)
Crescent CEO John Goff tells us technology has advanced so quickly in the last five years that it'll be nearly impossible for existing buildings to renovate and be as nice and efficient as new construction can be. That's why Class-AA buildings are nearly full in Houston and why it's worthwhile to launch this newest property. He says the timing is critical; there are numerous office projects announced Downtown, but Crescent hopes to be first out of the ground. The team is going in for building permits and choosing a GC next month and anticipates breaking ground by mid-summer. Although no tenants are locked in yet, John tells us he's got some great prospects and a good list of demand he's tracking.
6 Houston Center will be 30 stories totaling 600k SF and will feature a concierge floor on the 10th story with rooftop garden, fitness center, and conference center. John says ceiling height will be unique here; it's going up to 12 feet on the top floors. The building is being designed by HKS Architects and is pre-certified LEED Gold. It’ll sit across from 1 Houston Center and will connect to it via skybridge. It’s also embracing the new east/west light rail alignment with a 35-foot-tall lobby facing Rusk. JLL’s Chrissy Wilson is heading leasing.
EXECS
John Simons and Holden Rushing joined NAI Houston as principal/director of industrial corporate services and senior associate, respectively. The pair was formerly at Studley. They specialize in industrial corporate services across the US and Mexico; last year the team inked major deals like 1.8M SF for Port Logistics in Southern California and New Jersey. Locally, they handled a 160k SF BTS for Siemens Oil & Gas and repped Hines in a 500k SF BTS for HD Supply.
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Tony Talamas joined BMC Capital as VP to arrange debt and equity financing for multifamily and CRE from $1M to $15M. BMC Capital also just moved to 5599 San Felipe.
SALES
Hartman Short Term Income Properties XX purchased Gulf Plaza Building, a 120k SF full-leased facility in the Energy Corridor. Gulf Interstate Engineering occupies the facility and has four years remaining on its lease.
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7100 North Loop East purchased a 31k SF industrial building at 4321 Directors Row. CBRE’s Lucian Bukowski and Wyatt McCullock repped the seller (Max 5 Holdings) and Boyd Commercial/CORFAC International’s David Munson repped the buyer.
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An undisclosed buyer purchased 1.2 acres on Valplace Westchase. Retail Solutions repped the seller and Amit Mehta repped the buyer.
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Flair Builders purchased 7.9 acres on Louetta Road just west of SH 249 in Spring. Newcor CRE’s Rob Banzhaf and David Alexander repped the buyer and Caldwell Cos’ Keith Edwards and Clay Roper repped seller XJ Eight Development. Flair is finalizing development plans but is considering residential and/or commercial aspects.
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Sebastian and Irma Rodriguez purchased five acres at 10317 Airline. Newcor’s David Alexander repped seller Mikeska Estate and received five offers in less than 30 days on the market, closing above asking price.
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Hicks Ventures purchased 7700 San Felipe, a 100k SF office building. Seller Velocis had purchased the property in 2011, and netted a 30% IRR and 1.85x equity multiple for its investors in this deal.
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JAP Properties purchased 2.4 acres of industrial land in Cedar Crossing Business Park in Baytown. Cushman & Wakefield’s Kelley Parker, John Littman, Coe Parker, and Tim Thomas repped the seller and Claire Sinclair Properties’ Jim Hargrove repped the buyer.
LEASES
NetIQ leased 55k SF at 515 Post Oak. Cresa’s Gary Lawless and David Price repped the tenant (supported in project management by Troy Malish) and Stream’s Brad Fricks and Paul Coonrod repped landlord Columbia Property Trust. This is the first tenant to sign into 515 Post Oak since it completed significant renovations.
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PDG Architects renewed 24k SF at 3100 Weslayan. CBRE’s Lucian Bukowski repped the tenant and Hartman Income REIT’s Jennifer Rabon repped the landlord in-house.
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Core Refractory Systems leased 13k SF at 4555 Homestead Rd. Finial Group’s Reed Vestal and Ross Thomas repped the tenant and Warehouse Associates’ Lee Paris repped the landlord in-house.
DEVELOPMENT
Peloton released more info on Westcreek Centre, its 21-story, 368k SF office tower. It’ll be the first office building built inside the Loop in the Galleria in 34 years. The property will break ground by Q4 and will complete in Q2 ’16. It’s adjacent to the River Oaks District and will include 14 office floors and seven stories of parking. It features 26.5k SF floor plates and will be LEED Silver. Moody Rambin’s Griff Jaggard and Derek Beck are handling leasing, and BOKA Powell is the architect. Peloton will manage the property. Peloton’s Murl Richardson says 675k SF was absorbed in the Galleria last year, bringing Class-A vacancy to 12%.
FINANCING
Transwestern’s Michael Snodgrass, Jan Sparks, and Tim Bennett arranged acquisition financing for Liberty Hills, a 228-unit Class-A multifamily project. The team repped Sun Holdings.
THIS AND THAT
Moody Rambin was retained by Dornin Investments Group to lease Ten Plaza West (15915 Katy Fwy). The six-story, Class-B building is 106k SF and has 23k SF available. Griff Jaggard and Derek Beck will handle the assignment.
