Israeli Group Tosses Deep Ellum Office Tower A Life Preserver

The Epic I tower in Deep Ellum saw occupancy plummet by 50% when anchor tenant Uber left in 2022. 

Now its owner has secured a $115M lifeline to refinance three assets, including Epic I, and the cash infusion could help lease up the building, which had been struggling to cover debt payments.

Dallas-based Westdale Real Estate Investment and Management has received a loan from a group of undisclosed Israeli investors, and more than $63M of the funds will go to refinance the 283K SF office tower at 2550 Pacific Ave., according to the Dallas Business Journal, citing Amir Giryes, who helped arrange the loan.

Giryes is the founder of capital advisory firm Giryes Capital Group as well as managing partner of Southlake-based Pando Cos. Both companies helped arrange the deal, structured as a five-year bond, with funds from a syndicate of Israeli institutions, the DBJ reported.

Other Westdale properties refinanced in the deal include $34.5M for the Woodmeade luxury apartments in Irving and $8.25M for the Colonnade, a San Antonio office tower.

The loan comes amid a dry spell for office refinancings due to high interest rates and questions surrounding valuations, and it is a major boost for The Epic project as a whole. The development has been touted as a tonic to Deep Ellum’s image issues as a nightlife capital, the DBJ reported.

But some have questioned the viability of office in the area, and Uber’s decision to pull out of all of state and local incentive deals when it failed to meet job creation requirements in 2021 struck a 50% occupancy blow to Epic I.

Uber moved instead to Epic II, where it has since attempted to sublease 300K SF of unused space, according to the DBJ.

“This transaction highlights the liquidity of the Israeli market,” Giryes said in a statement. “Collaborating with a client like Westdale has been an exceptional experience, and the enthusiastic response from Israeli investors underlines their confidence.”