News
GOING TO THE GALLERIA
March 23, 2010
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| No, we’re not shopping or dining at Oceanaire; our headline's talking about the Galleria Office Towers. John Bowles Company was tapped in October handle leasing of the three towers, totaling 1.4M SF, and it's inked five new tenants, including Mentor Graphics, since December. JBC’s Chris Lipscomb (showing us the site with prez John Bowles) says the property is now 92% leased. Chris likes the location at the Tollway and LBJ ("like being at Main and Main") for amenities including mall restaurants, private parking, and a 5k SF conference space. |
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| Tower 2. JBC managing director Ed Pachecano says it's cliché now, but there really is a flight to quality in the city: "We're not competing with Class B on rates, but people are saying ‘It's within my reach' to be in a nicer building and enjoy the amenities." Ed tells us JBC reps are spreading the word that the Galleria has 140k SF available. |
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| Tower 3. John says one unusual firm tactic is cold calling prospects and getting out in the brokerage community." We don’t work 9 to 5. We don’t shut down and go home or punch the clock." John says in 2009 everyone was afraid to do anything, but now things are moving, the stock market is picking up, and tenants realize the sky isn't falling. They’re making decisions which sometimes involves a move, though smaller deals dominate because companies aren't leasing one more SF than they need. |
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| A shame that John, Ed and Chris are already physically fit, as there was no need for them to demonstrate the new 6k fitness center. (Truth be told, they are sports junkies; Ed is an SMU supporter while Chris cheers on TCU. John is a marathon runner, former collegiate soccer player, and FC Dallas fan.) JBC controls 9M SF in the Metroplex and has a property management arm, too, with 88 office buildings and 113 shopping centers. "We don’t own real estate," John says, "so we don’t compete with our owners. We focus on filling buildings." The Galleria Towers have deals in the pipeline and tours almost daily, he tells us. |
