Steady absorption east of Bush Intercontinental has led Cypressbrook and Huntington Industrial Partners to build a 168k SF industrial building in the area. (If your two favorite thing are high ceilings and low flying planes, listen up.)
Volta Drive Industrial Park will sit at the NEC of Volta Drive and Kenswick, just east of the airport. Cypressbrook president Mike Novelli says the area is in demand from growing air, freight and distribution companies. The bulk front-load facility will break ground in Q1.
EXECS
Chris Dray joined NewQuest to lead its urban development and urban tenant rep practice, a new focus for the firm as Houston densifies and gets more mixed-use development. He was previously with Moody Rambin.
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IREM announced its 2015 officers: Stream’s Kristine Fox as president, Brookfield’s Laura Krupowicz as president-elect and Griffin’s Janie Snider as immediate past president.
SALES
DNA Partners purchased Mason Village Shopping Center, a 97k SF property in Katy. HFF’s Ryan West repped the seller. The property, which had been owned by the same family for nearly 30 years, is 94% leased to 17 tenants.
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AKD Properties purchased two buildings totaling 44k SF of new construction at 13715/13719 FM 529. NAI Houston’s John Ferruzzo and Nick Peterson repped seller Axis Texas Development Group. Colliers’ Barrett Gibson and Jason English repped the buyer.
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A California-based 1031 exchange buyer purchased 8866 and 8876 Gulf Freeway, two five-story multi-tenant office buildings totaling 178k SF. Marcus & Millichap’s Ron Hebert repped the buyer and his colleagues Alex Zylberglait and Christopher Jones repped seller Accesso Partners (formerly Beacon Investment Properties). The buildings were constructed in ’83 and ’84 and renovated in 2010.
LEASES
Joel Hill and Doug Bates have formed Hill Bates Commercial, and they’ve already closed two sizable leases, repping the tenant:
• Procraft Cabinetry leased 41k SF in Pinemont Center. NAI Houston’s Ed Bane and Jon Michael repped landlord Incor Properties.
• Cooper Installations leased 12k SF in Guhn Road Service Center. Stream’s Michael Flowers repped the landlord.
DEVELOPMENT
KTR Capital Partners broke ground on Greens Commerce Center, a 213k SF Class-A cross-dock warehouse building west of I-45 and north of Beltway 8. It’s scheduled to deliver in summer 2015 and can be divided down to 43k SF. Stream’s Jeremy Lumbreras and Michael Flowers will lead leasing/management.
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Ace Center Sugar Land, a modern theater venue, is breaking ground on Dec. 9 and will deliver in fall 2016. The venue sits on 39 acres of City property southeast of 59 and University Boulevard. Thanks to movable walls, it can seat 6,400 event-goers, or contract down to 3,300 seats. That concept doesn’t exist in the Houston metro already, and should be one of the most flexible and advanced indoor performance venues in the nation. ACE Theatrical Group will design and construct the facility, and it provided $10M of equity. Meanwhile, the City of Sugar Land is financing $75M, using sales tax revenues and hotel occupancy tax funds.
FINANCING
CBRE’s Monica Newman arranged the financing of Palms at Cinco Ranch Apartments, a 200-unit complex in Richmond. The loan for the Class-A property was funded through HUD Section 221(d)(4), providing a 40-year fully amortizing permanent loan.
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Q10 KDH's Larry Peters secured a 10-year fixed-rate CMBS loan for the acquisition of an office building in Westchase. The two-story structure offers 95k SF and was a value-add play for the new owners. Larry says he had to find a lender who was comfortable with a loan per SF basis when the other metrics of the deal were not in line with typical underwriting.
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HFF’s Cortney Cole and Chris Rider arranged financing for Seventeen15 Enclave, a 206-unit Class-A multifamily community in the Energy Corridor. The team repped borrower Allen Harrison Co to secure a 10-year, fixed-rate loan with five years of I/O through MC Five Mile Commercial Mortgage Finance. The community delivered its second phase this year, and is already 95% leased.
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Grandbridge’s Gill Dolan arranged construction financing secured by The Hamilton Apartments. The 148-unit mid-rise community will be built on the southernmost block in Houston’s CBD.
