Rice University broke ground on the Arc in the Ion District, a nearly 200K SF research, innovation and office building.
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The Arc will feature seven floors of flexible lab and office space for Rice and other organizations seeking proximity to a research-focused innovation ecosystem, the university said in a press release.
Rice will be the anchor tenant, occupying 80K SF, or about 40% of the building. The Arc will share a plaza with the Ion building, extending the 12-block Ion District.
“The Arc is a significant investment in Rice’s future and in Houston’s continued growth as a center for innovation,” Robert Ladd, chairman of the Rice University Board of Trustees, said in a statement.
Floor plates will range from 28K SF to 31K SF, with 15-foot floor-to-floor heights and infrastructure capable of supporting advanced HVAC, high-capacity electrical and emergency power systems, and core laboratory requirements.
Rice Real Estate Co. is developing the project. Construction is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2028.
PEOPLE
Transwestern promoted Greg Munson to CEO of services at Transwestern. Munson assumes responsibilities previously held by Larry Heard, who served as Transwestern's CEO for more than 23 years and remains involved across the enterprise.
Munson has served as president of Transwestern Services since 2023. He joined the firm 11 years ago as Minneapolis market leader and led growth across the region. As national president, he helped complete five acquisitions in Chicago, the mid-Atlantic, Philadelphia and Minneapolis and helped add more than a dozen senior leaders.
Munson will report to Executive Chairman Robert Duncan and work with Heard and leaders across the firm.
LEASES
Gulf Coast Bag renewed its 19K SF lease at 4422-4442 W. 12th St. Oxford Partners’ Sam Marnoy and Matt Rogers represented the tenant. The landlord, Prologis, was represented in-house by Julia Alston.
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Sparq1200, an architectural custom fabrication, environmental branding and signage company, renewed its 23K SF headquarters lease at 5151 Milwee St. Greg Shaw with Shaw Commercial Properties represented the tenant.
Christian Villarreal with Finial Group and William Saied with Brennan Investment Group represented the landlord, GKI Infill Houston.
SALES
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WareSpace, an operator of microbay warehouse space, acquired a 51K SF industrial building at 1215 Seamist Drive in the Timbergrove neighborhood, just northwest of Downtown Houston. It also acquired a 58K SF property in Fremont, California, and plans to reposition both properties into flexible, move-in-ready warehouse units ranging from 200 SF to 2K SF.
The company's model combines shorter-term leases with all-inclusive pricing and on-site services, giving small operators access to industrial space.
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An owner-user bought 38 acres at 12814 Boudreaux Road in Tomball with plans to redevelop it for their own business. Partners Real Estate's Shaffer Braun and Collins Howell represented the seller.
CONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT
HITT Contracting and NASA broke ground on the Applied Spaceflight Fabrication Facility, a 38K SF manufacturing facility at Johnson Space Center. HITT is the general contractor for the project, which will deliver a high-bay machine shop designed to support component production for NASA’s spaceflight missions.
Also known as Building 70, the greenfield project consolidates machining equipment and operations currently housed across multiple campus buildings. The project is the first phase of a broader engineering complex planned to bring manufacturing, assembly and laboratory capabilities closer together.
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Work is complete on a new 1,000-space parking garage on the southeast side of Downtown Houston, part of Phase 1 of Houston First Corp.’s Convention District Transformation Project, which is on track to open in May 2028.
The new GRB South Garage at 1835 Bell St., near the intersection of Chenevert Street, is initially being used for Rockets games, concerts and events at the nearby Toyota Center. The garage adjoins GRB South, the 700K SF extension of the George R. Brown Convention Center that is the cornerstone of the project’s first phase.
The garage will eventually open to guests of the Hilton Americas-Houston hotel and other public use once construction activity in the area allows.
The opening of the GRB South Garage has allowed for the reopening of Avenida Central, the 660-space garage underneath Discovery Green, to public parking. That garage had been used exclusively by Hilton valet since the closure of the previous Avenida South garage in May.
Phase 1 also includes a new 100K SF event plaza connecting GRB South with the Toyota Center. Future phases will include a new convention and entertainment district and major renovations to the legacy GRB building.
Hines serves as the project manager on the development, which was designed by Populous and is being constructed by a joint venture between Gilbane Building Co. and Flintco Construction.
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