This Week's Houston Deal Sheet
Louis Rosenthal will lead JLL’s energy and renewables practice group when International Director Bruce Rutherford retires Jan. 1.
Rutherford joined JLL in 1983, negotiating more than 40M SF of corporate and regional headquarters as well as various corporate site selections, according to a news release. He led the global energy and renewables practice group for nine years.
Rutherford previously initiated, designed and led the firm's tenant representation division in Asia Pacific and was instrumental in the merger of JLL and The Staubach Co.
Rosenthal approaches the position with more than 35 years of industry experience, 23 of them with JLL, focusing on tenant representation.
“Bruce has spent almost 20 years focused on the energy industry and contributing to JLL’s overall growth,” Rosenthal said. “I am confident that the foundation he built will allow us to continue to bring value and success to our clients.”
PEOPLE
Transwestern Real Estate Services hired Craig Bean as the managing director of its Houston industrial group. He will be responsible for industrial project leasing and tenant representation as well as identification of acquisition, disposition, and sourcing investment and development opportunities for institutional clients.
Previously, Bean worked as a managing principal for Holt Lunsford Commercial’s Houston industrial division. He has also worked as a policy adviser for Gov. Greg Abbott.
SALES
NewQuest Properties Investment Sales Division sold the 130K SF Tradewinds Shopping Center in Texas City in an exchange between a local buyer and seller.
The retail center sits on 11.5 acres at 2000 Ninth Ave. and was 60% vacant at the time of sale. NewQuest’s David Luther represented the seller, WFP Tradewinds, and Dakota Workman sourced the buyer, 2020 Harwin 59 Shopping Center. The buyer plans to work with the city to improve the property immediately, NewQuest said.
The shopping center has 81K SF of available space and nine long-term tenants, including dd’s Discounts, Family Dollar, Texas First Bank, Little Caesars and Citi Trends.
LEASES
Investment & Development Ventures signed a full-building, 603K SF lease with a national third-party logistics provider for Building 4 at South Belt Central Business Park in Houston.
The building at 4902 South Belt Central Drive is slated to open in January. It includes 36-foot ceilings, about 200 trailer parking spaces and 4,500 SF of office space. Building 4 is part of Phase 2 of the 3.5M SF development. Phase 1 is fully leased.
Jim Foreman and Brooke Forrest of Cushman & Wakefield represented the landlord, a special-purpose entity of IDV, and Stephen Schneidau and Chuck Berger of Cushman & Wakefield represented the tenant.
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Louisiana-based Origin Bank renewed its 22K SF lease in the Murphy Building at 9805 Katy Freeway in Memorial City. The bank occupies the entire second floor of the Class-A building, which serves as the headquarters for Origin Bank’s Houston employees.
Louis Rosenthal and John Burke of JLL represented the tenant, Origin Bank, and Brad MacDougall and Warren Alexander represented MetroNational, the landlord.
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NewFound Partners announced several tenants have pre-leased 63% of its office redevelopment under construction at 1106 Witte Road in the Spring Branch area:
— Leggett Ventures Portfolio Cos., a Houston-based private equity firm, leased 4K SF and will condense its portfolio companies — On Point Custom Homes, Cannon Field and NewFound Partners — under one roof in the building.
— North Hudson Resource Partners, an energy-focused private equity firm, is relocating from its downtown office to a 4K SF space in the building.
— Elevated Oral Surgery leased 2,700 SF, represented by Alan O. Clark of Phelps Commercial Realty.
Amenities at the Class-A office space include secured ground-level parking, a courtyard with green space, and a wellness room. Construction is on track for completion in the first half of 2023.
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Federal American Grill, an informal steakhouse and seafood restaurant with four locations across Houston, signed a lease to open a location in the LyondellBasell Tower downtown.
The restaurant leased 7K SF and an additional 1,500 SF of patio space on the first floor of the building, fronting Houston Center’s central plaza green space. The location should open in summer 2023 to serve lunch and dinner on the weekdays and dinner on Saturdays.
Federal American Grill was represented in lease negotiations by David Littwitz of Littwitz Investments, and Brookfield Properties, the building owner, was represented by Bruce Wallace and Radkey Jolink of Jolink Wallace Commercial.
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NewQuest Properties announced the following leases:
— Freebirds leased a 1.24-acre site in The Grand at Aliana at the intersection of West Grand Parkway and West Airport Boulevard in Richmond. Josh Friedlander and David Meyers of NewQuest Properties represented the landlord. Greg Stanislawski of The Retail Strategy Group represented the tenant.
— Petco leased 12.6K SF of retail space in Fort Bend Town Center II in Missouri City from NewQuest Properties. Bob Conwell and Andrew Alvis of NewQuest Properties represented the landlord. Matt Reed of Shop Cos. represented the tenant.
— POpshelf leased 10K SF of retail space in Humble Shopping Center in Humble from Townsen Humble Center LP. Kevin Sims and Nick Ramsey of NewQuest Properties represented the landlord. Mark Raines of JLL represented the tenant.
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Common Desk expanded its footprint at the Ion by 28K SF. Rice Management Co. and the Ion, an innovation hub, expanded the partnership with Common Desk after the Ion reached full occupancy in less than a year and acquired a waitlist.
The Ion, at 4201 Main St., is a 266K SF creative office building designed to bring Houston’s entrepreneurial, corporate and academic communities into collaborative office spaces and programs.
Common Desk began operating in the Ion in August 2021. Its combined space now spans 86K SF and includes office suites, accessible design, flexible office solutions and amenities like a coffee bar and conference rooms.
