This Week's Houston Deal Sheet
Land Tejas Development — the developer behind Texas' first man-made crystal lagoon north of Houston — is back with more action.
This time, the company will develop a 70-acre mixed-use destination in Lago Mar, a master-planned resort community in Texas City, about 14 miles north of Galveston and 40 miles south of Houston.
The development will also feature a 12-acre Crystal Clear Lagoon, which is bigger than the 4-acre lagoon in the Balmoral community in Humble. Construction on the lagoon is expected to start this month and wrap up in early 2020.
“The Lago Mar lagoon will completely change the entrance into our city, giving our citizens and tourists around the country an exciting destination for relaxation and entertainment,” Texas City Mayor Matt Doyle said in a release. “I could not be happier. Our mission was to make our section of Interstate 45 something special. The Lago Mar lagoon is beyond our wildest dreams.”
The multiphase development process will include amenities to support the lagoon, such as multiple beaches, a large cabana pool with heated pool, a kids' beach with water features, paddleboards and small sailboats.
Additionally, the project calls for a beach club, a two-story swim-up bar, a beachfront event lawn for weddings and concerts, a welcome center and clubhouse, and an event building. A hotel will be positioned with access to the future waterfront boardwalk.
Trez Capital President John Hutchinson, who is providing financing for the Lago Mar development, said the Galveston-Clear Lake corridor is booming. The resort-style amenities within or in response to the lagoon will attract residents and visitors to the area.
In addition to Crystal Lagoons Corp., Land Tejas is working with Florida-based Heidt Design LLC, Houston-based KGA/Deforest Design LLC, Kimley-Horn planning and design engineering consultants, Iowa-based event management company VenuWorks and Jones Carter in The Woodlands to develop plans for the lagoon.
EXECS
NAI Partners Investment Fund hired John Nolan as vice president of asset management. He will oversee the overall NAI Investment Fund portfolio and coordinate the execution of the company's business plan for each asset to maximize investor value. Previously with Weingarten Realty Investors, Nolan served as a joint venture asset manager for larger partnerships with institutional investors. He managed 20 shopping centers across the United States totaling more than 2.8M SF.
SALES
An undisclosed buyer purchased the Harrisburg Retail Center at 7011 Harrisburg Blvd. in Houston. The 14K SF property, anchored by Turimex Internacional, is in the emerging submarket of EaDo. EDGE's Burdette Huffman and Josh Jacobs represented the undisclosed seller. Mark Kalil represented the buyer.
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Hat Creek Burgers acquired a 0.91-acre retail site in Cross Creek Commons, at FM 1463 and Fry Road in Fulshear. NewQuest Properties' J.J. McDermott and Andrew Alvis represented the seller. Cielo Property Services' Brad Devault represented the buyer.
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Chamberlin Houston LLC purchased a 72K SF industrial lot at 4545 Langfield Road in Houston. CBRE's William Rudolf and Kyle Golding represented the seller, Hs-Tucson Az LLC.
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Keener Investments acquired a 314-unit multifamily portfolio in League City. The deal consists of two apartment communities: The Shore (176 units) and Harbor Walk (138 units). Both are Class-B assets built in the mid-1980s and have an average unit size of 880 SF. Amenities include a swimming pool, a fitness center, a business park and a playground. The properties will be managed by Keener Management, and Keener Construction will renovate the unit interiors, upgrade amenities and perform light exterior upgrades.
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JLL is bringing a nine-story, 149K SF Class-A office building on behalf of Philadelphia-based Equus Capital Partners to the market. The asset is between the CityCentre mixed-use development and MetroNational's Memorial City in the Katy Freeway East office submarket. The property, at 10497 Town & Country Way, is 89% occupied.
LEASES
CommonGrounds, a San Diego-based coworking operator, signed a 28K SF lease at Greenway Plaza, a business district between downtown and Uptown. The space will be integrated into The Hub, the connectivity center for the 11-building campus, and is expected to open spring 2019. This marks the second location in Texas (the first is in Fort Worth) and 12th nationwide. Greenway Plaza's operator, Property Investments LLC, was represented by the in-house leasing team of Rima Soroka and Eric Siegrist.
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DLA Piper LLP renewed a 25K SF lease at 1000 Louisiana St. in Houston. Cushman & Wakefield's David Guion and Tim Relyea represented the tenant. CBRE's Dave Hanusa represented the landlord, Metropolitan Life Insurance Co.
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Gulf Pacific Rice renewed a 64K SF lease at 5700 Campbell Road in Houston. NAI Partners’ Jake Wilkinson represented the tenant.
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The Federal Aviation Administration signed a 13K SF lease at 12650 North Featherwood Drive in Houston. Moody Rambin's Kurt Kistler and Terri Torregrossa represented the building owner, Derrick Management LLC.
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MMS Holdings Group LLC signed a 10K SF lease at 7904 North Sam Houston Parkway West in Houston. Moody Rambin's Al Gabosch represented the tenant. Building owner Caldwell Cos. was represented in-house by Mary Caldwell.
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Moody Rambin will handle the leasing of two office buildings owned by Southeast Texas Investments LLC: Huntwick Atrium I at 5206 West FM 1960 and Offices at Champions at 5222 West FM 1960 in Houston. Huntwick Atrium I, a two-story property, totals 23K SF. Offices at Champion, a two-story building, totals 24K SF. Both are within the FM 1960 and Champions submarket. Moody Rambin's Kurt Kistler and Terri Torregrossa will handle leasing.
DEVELOPMENT
The Signorelli Co. is constructing its new headquarters. The 16K SF open-concept office building is at 1401 Woodlands Parkway. The two-story building is across the street from the existing office, which has been Signorelli's HQ since 2013. Arch-Con Corp. is the general contractor, and identityARCHITECTS will be responsible for the design. The new office space is slated for completion in Q2.
THIS AND THAT
Conroe Economic Development Council Executive Director Danielle Scheiner is being recognized as a 2018 Trailblazer by the Greater Houston Women's Chamber of Commerce. She is one of 11 women who will be honored for making significant strides in their industries and demonstrating leadership in their careers and communities. In addition, Scheiner also received the first-ever Conroe/Lake Conroe Chamber of Commerce ATHENA Leadership Award in July and was named one of North America’s Top 50 Economic Developers in September.
