The Deal Sheet
Bisnow is on the ground at ICSC RECon in Vegas this week, where placemaking is the buzzword. It seems to us that can apply either to shopping centers or booths trying to out-attract each other.
We checked out some of the floor's biggest (and coolest) booths. To fit in as many dealmakers as possible, most of the big brokerages like Cushman & Wakefield (to the left), CBRE, JLL, and Newmark Grubb Knight Frank offered massive open-air setups. Big-time owners like GGP and Acadia Realty Trust, shown here, are going for a more enclosed, private feel. Over at the Cushman booth, the firm's Americas retail head Matt Winn told us placemaking among brokers and owners isn't just about sprucing up old shopping centers anymore; to survive, retail owners need to curate a healthy mix of hip local as well as tried-and-true national retailers.
The X Team International booth is lively here on day two, and X Team's Houston partner Baker Katz has been on-site throughout the show. Principal Jason Baker tells us there has been a lot of positive activity and productive meetings with retailers and developers alike. (It's so busy, in fact, that he couldn't take a break for our photo op. Good thing we had our long-range paparazzi lens on us.)
EXECS
Trammell Crow’s Brandon Houston was promoted to SVP. He is responsible for sourcing and executing new office development and investment opportunities throughout Houston. He has been with the firm since 2012, and has worked on Noble Energy Center One and Two and Energy Center Three and Four. Over the past decade, Brandon has negotiated 2M SF of leases and $400M of construction loans.
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PMRG hired three new VPs of development and construction, all with over 20 years in the industry: Paul Baros (formerly with Amegy Bank), John Castilla (formerly Gilbane), and Myron Pendley (formerly JE Dunn). The trio will work on PM’s office developments.
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Eric Anderson was named Transwestern’s No. 1 top producer nationally for the second year in a row, outpacing 437 of his firm’s producers across 34 US cities. Eric has been a Top 5 producer nationally for the last six years, and was first the No. 1 in 2008. Last year, he completed 93 transactions totaling 1.7M SF valued over $736M.
SALES
Richland Financial Services of Texas purchased a 67k SF facility at 11810 Fairmont and 13501 Bay Area. CBRE’s Tom Lynch repped seller Kelley Fairmont.
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Poroo Baker Investments purchased a 58k SF industrial building at 5721 Harvey Wilson Dr. NAI Houston’s John Ferruzzo and Chris Kugle repped seller NIFF, and Southwest Realty Advisors’ Steven O’Conor and Marc Drumwright repped the buyer.
LEASES
Petroleum Club of Houston leased 30k SF at Total Plaza (1201 Louisiana). The club is moving into the 35-story, 892k SF tower after 50 years in the ExxonMobil building on Bell Street. Kirksey is designing the new space, which will open in January. Cushman & Wakefield’s Joe Peddie and Tim Relyea repped the tenant and Brookfield’s Paul Frazier and Clint Bawcom repped the landlord in-house.
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Ebanks Horne Rota Moos leased 12k SF in 2777 Allen Pkwy, a relocation from Downtown. Newmark Grubb Knight Frank’s Keith Lloyd repped the tenant and CBRE’s Kristen Rabel repped landlord American General Life Insurance Co.
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Zimmermann, Axelrad, Meyer, Stern & Wise renewed 20k SF in 3040 Post Oak. CBRE’s Cody Armbrister repped landlord Lopo.
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Binswanger Glass Co leased 19k SF at 3133 McKinney St. NAI Houston’s John Ferruzzo and Michael Keegan repped landlord St. James Equity Partners. CBRE’s Carlton Anderson repped the tenant.
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MetroNational announced seven new retailers in Memorial City Mall. Vera Bradley, Brighton Collectibles, and Six:02 are now open, and Banana Republic, Soma Intimates, Chico’s, and Kay’s Jewelers will open their doors on a rolling basis throughout the year. Memorial City Mall has grown rapidly since its 2003 overhaul, and its annual sales per SF approached $800 last year. Director of retail leasing Danna Diamond says the mall is moving away from its disproportionate slant to the junior market by expanding its range of choices.
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Roger, Morris, Grover renewed 10k SF at 5718 Westheimer. SOR Real Estate Advisors’ Stewart Robinson repped the tenant and CBRE’s Cody Armbrister and Dave Hanusa repped landlord Westheimer Road Investors.
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Sinopec USA expanded to 20k SF in 3050 Post Oak. KW Commercial’s Shirley Mei Qing repped the tenant and CBRE’s Cody Armbrister and Rima Soroka repped landlord Lopo.
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Premier Millwork leased 20k SF on one acre at 3409 Garrow. Cushman & Wakefield’s Jim Foreman and Beau Kaleel repped the landlord, Dulles Cartwright. Gerber Realty’s David Gerber repped the tenant.
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Seyfarth Shaw moved into its new office in Pennzoil Place. Rottet Studio designed the space, which reduced the firm’s footprint by one-third but can host 35% more attorneys.
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SGS North America leased 16k SF of industrial space at 6801 Silsbee. Boyd Commercial/CORFAC International’s David Boyd repped the landlord and Cushman & Wakefield’s Beau Kaleel repped the tenant.
DEVELOPMENT
Genan opened a new state-of-the-art tire recycling facility, the largest of its kind in the world. The firm now operates the world’s four largest tire-processing plants, but this is its first manufacturing location in the US. (It will serve as the US HQ, from which Genan hopes to capture 10% of the American recycled tire market.) The new plant has the capacity to recycle 10 million passenger car tires a year, about a third of all the used tires in Texas. It will employ 60 workers and cost $140M to build. Genan plans to build four more plants across the US in coming years.
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Construction is wrapping up on SH 35. Two additional inside lanes are opening in the next couple of months, a partnership between the City of Pearland and TxDOT. The project began in fall 2009 and includes enacting a Quiet Zone by building a train signal at FM 518 and SH 35.
THIS AND THAT
NAI Houston was selected as the exclusive leasing agent for Aque Investment Group's four-building portfolio. The properties include the office buildings located at 1500 Dairy Ashford, 3838 North Sam Houston Pkwy, 350 Glenborough, and 12600 Northborough. Doug Pack negotiated the assignment on behalf of NAI Houston, and Drew Crawford will lead marketing for the landlord.
