This Week's Houston Deal Sheet
When CBRE global director of energy & sustainability Pete Scarpelli joined CBRE five years ago, a colleague asked him if he would have worked himself out of a job when he was finished implementing sustainability initiatives at the firm. But luckily, building technologies and operations are changing at such a rapid pace that Pete and other green industry pros will likely never be bored. We asked what’s exciting them the most these days.
Greater LED Implementation
LED lighting is one of the best examples, Pete says—the technology changes every nine months. (Above, he poses with some bulbs.) And the cost to swap out to the upgraded technology is decreasing. “A year ago, maybe one or two buildings out of five would have LEDs,” he says. “Now LEDs are in all five.” Pete even revamped his own condo, switching out halogens for LEDs and ultimately saving 22% in energy. Commercial clients spend an average of $1/SF for lighting, he says, and LED implementation can cut costs by 20% or more.
Better Air Controls
Parmenter Realty Partners has installed outdoor CO2 monitors on some of its buildings, like Westchase Park Plaza in Houston. They signal to the HVAC system when fresh air is needed, only kicking in when necessary, says Steve Harrison, the firm’s managing director of facilities and sustainability. (He's snapped above, second from left, with USGBC COO Mahesh Ramanujam, Parmenter's Steve Bronner, Dallas Mayor Rawlings and Parmenter's Josh Hedderich at the LEED ceremony for Parmenter's Rambler Park in Dallas last August.) It also means greater comfort for tenants, which is paramount for owners, he says; the firm is also beginning to remove fountain spaces within its buildings and replacing them with planting areas to increase oxygen.
Read about more exciting sustainability initiatives in Bisnow's National Property Management publication here!
EXECS
Mia Hinojosa joined Whitney Bank as VP of commercial banking. She was previously with Green Bank for 8.5 years.
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Savills Studley promoted two: Drew Morris to senior managing director and Jim Bell to managing director. Drew, who was one of the original five brokers in the relaunch of the firm’s Houston office in ’03, has 20 years of real estate experience and specializes in the management of real estate portfolios. He has completed over 500 transactions totaling over 10M SF in his career and is consistently one of the company’s top producers. Jim has more than 10 years of tenant rep experience. 2014 was his best year ever, and he was recognized as one of Savills Studley’s top brokers.
SALES
Richter Family Partnership purchased 4.5 acres of industrial land on Reeveston Road. Cushman & Wakefield’s Tim Thomas repped seller Webber Properties, and Kelley Parker repped the buyer.
LEASES
Cousins signed two large lease extensions totaling 216k SF. Direct Energy renewed its Greenway Plaza lease, contracting from 228k SF to 192k SF but extending its maturity to 2023. Cox Radio renewed its 24k SF lease in Post Oak Central, extending to 2021.
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Trenwa leased a 17k SF facility at 34229 Sunset Ln in Brookshire. TNRG’s Patrick Wolford and Preston Yaggi repped landlord Gecko Holdings, and Colliers’ Blake Gibson repped the tenant.
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ESP Completion Technologies leased 21k SF at 14043 S Gessner in Missouri City. NAI Partners’ Jake Wilkinson repped landlord HC4 Holdings.
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Method Construction leased 12k SF of spec office/warehouse space at 13731 FM 529. NAI Partners’ John Ferruzzo and Nick Peterson repped the landlord.
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Exel renewed 12k SF of office space at 4101 Interwood North Pkwy. Cushman & Wakefield’s Kelley Parker, Coe Parker, John Littman and Tim Thomas repped the tenant, and DTZ’s JP Hutcheson repped the landlord.
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Red the Uniform Tailor leased 18k SF at 71 Esplanade Dr for a new showroom. NAI Partners’ Lane Morgan repped the tenant. The landlord is IDI Gazeley Brookfield Logistics Properties.
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Gardere renewed 75k SF in Wells Fargo Plaza and is relocating within the building. The law firm is updating its interiors design to be more efficient and flexible. CBRE’s Dave Hanusa and Bonnie Kelley repped the landlord and Savills Studley’s Mark O’Donnell, Kevin Hodges and David Endelman repped the tenant. Wells Fargo Plaza, which has won the TOBY twice, is 93% occupied.
DEVELOPMENT
Horizon Development is building a 39k SF MOB at 7619 Branford Place in Sugar Land’s Telfair. It’s slated to break ground this month and deliver in Q4. The Class-A property fronts Highway 59 just east of University Boulevard. Transwestern’s Tim Gregory and Ashley Cassel will handle leasing.
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A JV between TRC Capital Partners (formerly The Redstone Cos), Hansen Partners and Barbour Investment broke ground on Regions Financial Center, an 11-story, 162k SF office building with 18k SF of ground-floor retail. The property is at 3773 Richmond between Timmons and Cummins. It’s 35% pre-leased, and will be the Houston HQ for Regions Bank. Hansen is handling leasing, Philip Ewald Architects and STG Design designed the building, and EE Reed is GC. Regions provided financing.
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MCR Development completed the renovation of TownePlace Suites by Marriott Houston Intercontinental Airport. The 134-key extended stay hotel updated the lobby, including adding soft seating and charging ports, and redesigned the marketplace.
FINANCING
LMI Capital’s Brandon Brown and Jamie Mullin arranged $12M in debt to refinance two multifamily properties. They obtained 10-year fixed-rate CMBS loans with three-year I/O periods that provided cash-out proceeds.
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LMI Capital’s Brandon Brown arranged $11M in financing for a garden-style apartment complex in Bear Creek/Copperfield. He secured a 10-year loan with a CMBS lender at 4.2% fixed-rate. The first mortgage was 80% of the purchase price and included five years I/O.
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CPR Money funded a $4.2M acquisition loan for 1114 Texas Ave, a 16-story vacant office building in the CBD. The deal closed within three weeks of the term sheet receipt, allowing the borrower to close quickly on a below-market acquisition price. PMI Hotels will redevelop the building into a 154-key Hyatt Place Hotel. Construction is expected to begin in nine to 12 months.
THIS AND THAT
Moody Rambin participated in the Carney Men’s 2nd annual golf tournament at Wildcat Golf Club, which raises money for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. The Carney Men, formed in ’04 by Hunter and Griff Jaggard, takes part in the BP MS-150 to find a cure for MS. The tourney is just one way the team raises money for the cause.
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IDI Gazeley Brookfield Logistics Properties selected JLL to manage 47M SF of industrial real estate across the country. This is the firm’s largest industrial property management assignment in the US. It includes 165 properties, some of which are in Texas.
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CORRECTION: In yesterday’s pub, we incorrectly wrote that pros from Grandbridge and CBRE joined ARA. Holly Minter was previously with JLL, and Tip Strickland and David Schwarz came from Grandbridge. Check out the corrected story on ARA's new debt services here.
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Our thoughts and prayers today go out to our business manager, Mike Jax, whose father passed away yesterday morning. The funeral is Friday morning. He was a great man; may he rest in peace.
