New Plans Revealed For Former Toys R Us Building Near Memorial City
One former Toys R Us site, victim to the shuttering of hundreds of stores nationwide in June, is in the midst of redevelopment talks in West Houston.
Houston-based Moody National Cos. is reportedly transforming the site into a mixed-use mid-rise development off Interstate 10 and Bunker Hill just east of Memorial City, the Houston Chronicle reported.
The rendering for 9655 Katy Freeway illustrates a six-story, office-anchored development that will deliver in fall 2019. The 275K SF project will feature ground-level retail and dining and a multilevel parking garage. The minimum divisible space will be 6K SF and the triple net rent is $35/SF.
Moody National owns other property near the site including two adjacent parcels totaling about 5.2 acres and the 164-unit Le Renaissance Apartments, which it purchased in 2016.
At the time of the apartment acquisition, Le Renaissance garnered considerable attention due to its location near Memorial High School, Memorial City Mall and nearby Class-A office building product. Moody National revealed plans then to turn the property into a mixed-use project. That hasn’t come to fruition yet.
In all, Moody National owns about 9.7 contiguous acres bounded by the Interstate 10 frontage road, Bunker Hill Road and Gaylord Road, the Houston Business Journal noted. The redevelopment plans for the additional parcels have not been released and were not outlined on the 9655 Katy Freeway rendering.
After filing bankruptcy in 2017, Toys R Us closed its last U.S. store this June. In March, there were 18 Houston-area locations totaling about 673K SF, the Houston Business Journal reported. Throughout the nation, and in Houston, developers and investors are reinventing or backfilling the spaces of former big-box retailers.
