This Week’s Houston Deal Sheet: Junction Nears Groundbreaking Of Another Industrial Development
Junction Commercial Real Estate plans to break ground in the coming weeks on Pasadena Logistics Center, a 140K SF industrial distribution project, the firm shared exclusively with Bisnow.
While industrial construction starts in the Houston market fell sharply this year, Junction uses its well-capitalized position to keep its development pipeline up, Junction founder and Managing Partner Reed Vestal said. The firm has developed over 2.6M SF of distribution product in Texas and Arizona in the past two years, he said.
Industrial tenant demand has dropped from peak highs, but it is still elevated above pre-pandemic levels, he said, adding there is more demand than supply coming to the marketplace.
“Our population growth has been immense over the last couple of years, so we need product to get out of warehouses and into people’s homes in the last-minute scenario,” Vestal said. “That’s been a main driver in the Houston market, getting product out of our warehouse and onto people’s front doorsteps or onto businesses’ front doorsteps.”
Pasadena Logistics Center will help make those connections from the nearby Port Houston, he said. The development at 5176 Red Bluff Road in Pasadena will have a 32-foot clear height, 37 truck trailer stalls, 31 dock-high doors, and a 130-foot truck court, according to a news release. It is designed by Seeberger Architecture and Langan Engineering.
Construction is starting in the next couple of weeks and completion is slated for the first half of 2025. Junction’s development team acquired the 10.5-acre site in December 2022, during which it was represented in-house by Vestal and John Erck. Vestal, Erck and Katie Keys will oversee the leasing and sale of the development.
PEOPLE
Pagewood, a real estate owner, developer and operator, appointed Venkat Kandru as its chief technology officer. This is the firm’s first C-suite addition to its two managing principals, Paul Coonrod and Mat Volz.
Kandru has 30 years of professional technology experience, including commercial real estate technology applications, data science, analytics and application of AI to decision support systems. He will continue development of The Lighthouse, the firm’s augmented intelligence platform, and lead the firm’s data science and technology initiatives.
SALES
Dallas-based Apricus Realty Capital bought 15800 Export Plaza Drive in Houston, a fully leased 9.7-acre industrial outdoor storage property in proximity to George Bush Intercontinental Airport.
The acquisition was a programmatic joint venture with ABR Capital Partners, directed by Apricus’ Matt Haley, Garrett Marler and Cort Martin. Colliers’ Jason Tangen and Paul Dominique represented Apricus.
The property is a fully paved concrete site with 89K SF across four warehouse/service buildings and one office.
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A Houston-based investor sold a 20K SF multitenant industrial property at 38 and 40 Wilson Road in Humble. The seller built the asset in 1993 and owned the property for 31 years.
The buyer is an Austin-based investment group that plans to lease the vacant units and upgrade the asset. Jared Pinto at Newman Kelly Real Estate represented the seller and procured the buyer.
LEASES
Skyline Industrial Supply subleased almost 15K SF of Class-A office space at 1735 Hughes Landing Blvd. in The Woodlands from Exxon Mobil Corp. Skyline Industrial Supply is a B2B e-commerce platform for maintenance, repair and operations products.
Colliers’ Tom Condon Jr., Jillian Fredericks, Norm Munoz, Michael Wu and Nic Fang represented the sublessee, Skyline Industrial Supply. JLL’s Lonna Jenks, Beau Bellow and Ronnie Deyo represented the sublessor, Exxon Mobil.
CONSTRUCTION & DEVELOPMENT
Lovett Commercial is entering the multifamily market with the development of The Lawndale, an essential housing development in Houston’s Greater East End. The 106-unit garden-style community will open to residents this month.
The complex has one-, two- and three-bedroom units, half of which will be set aside for essential housing. Essential housing is reserved for professionals such as police officers, teachers and nurses earning around 80% of the area median income.
“For our inaugural multifamily project, we’re proud to make investment in the East End, a lively and diverse historical neighborhood,” Frank Liu, Lovett Commercial founder and president, said in a news release. “Essential housing is an investment in our city’s future and a vital part of creating and maintaining vibrant communities.”
The Lawndale broke ground in early 2023 and is managed by Capstone Real Estate Services.
