RNR Real Estate Briefs – Texas & more

RNR Real Estate Briefs – (Realty News Report) – HOUSTON – Whitestone REIT announced a merger agreement with altenrative investment manager Ares Management Corp. Funds managed by Ares will acquire all outstanding Whitestone common shares and operating partnership units for $19 per share in a $1.7 billion all-cash deal expected to close in the third quarter. The merger would take Houston-based Whitestone private. Whitestone owns 56 shopping centers totaling 4.9 million SF across Phoenix, Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, and San Antonio.

HOUSTON – Transwestern’s Investments group has been appointed asset manager for KORE US REIT, which has a portfolio of 13 office properties totaling 4.8 million SF across eight markets with a total value of $1.3 billion. Transwestern is already KORE’s services provider for 12 of the assets in the portfolio, which are located in Bellevue/Redmond, Sacramento, Denver, Orlando, Houston, Austin, and Dallas. Services include property management, accounting, and leasing. The assets include 1800 West Loop South and Bellaire Park (6565 & 6575 West Loop South) in Houston.

“The Transwestern Services team has a long history of providing property management and leasing services for these assets,” said Charles Hazen, President of Transwestern Investments. “Our newly expanded role allows us to bring Transwestern’s integrated investment management capabilities to help execute the long-term strategy for the REIT.”

CYPRESS, Texas – Drake Plastics opened a new 140,000-SF manufacturing and corporate office at 14869 Grant Road in Cypress. The grand opening of the 45-acre campus corresponded with the company’s 30th anniversary. Drake Plastics specializes in extrusion, injection molding, precision machining, machine building, engineering, and distribution of ultra-high-performance plastics.

CYPRESS, Texas – Jetset Pilates is expanding to the Cypress area with a 2,400-SF studio at 20115 Bridgeland Creek Parkway in Bridgeland operated by Chance and Holly Montgomery.

STAFFORD – Chetan Puranik leased 4,550 SF at 13003 Murphy Road, Suite 1C2, Stafford. Oxford Partners’ Ian Holcomb and Matt Rodgers represented the tenant. The landlord, 13003 Murphy Rd LLC, was represented by Andy Parrish, Lesley Rice, and Audrey Parsons of Partners.

TOMBALL – Mike Spheeris leased 6,840 SF at 1639 South Cherry St., Tomball. Oxford Partners’ Ian Holcomb and Matt Rogers represented the tenant. The landlord, Cherry St Business Park, LLC, was represented by Chase Taylor, Patrick Wolford, and Mason Alsbrooks of Lee & Associates.

Texas

IRVING, Texas – GEO Plastics acquired a 69,363-SF industrial facility at TriStar Business Park, at 7815 Jetstar Drive in Irving, marking an expansion of its North Texas operations that is expected to create 50 jobs. Chris Teesdale and Pride Snow of Colliers represented the buyer. Greg Cannon of Colliers represented the seller, Calgary-based Hopewell Development.

DALLAS – Balfour Beatty leased 35,139 SF of office space at One Victory Park in Uptown Dallas. Matt Schendle and Carrie Halbrooks of Cushman & Wakefield represented the landlord, Clarion Partners. Andrew Cheney of Lee & Associates and Phil Puckett and Harlan Davis of CBRE represented Balfour Beatty.

The Continental Residences in San Antonio. — The Continental Residences was recently completed at at 110 S. Laredo St. in San Antonio. BKV Group courtesy photo.

SAN ANTONIO – BKV Group announced the completion of The Continental Residences, a 290-unit rental high-rise from developer Weston Urban in downtown San Antonio. BKV was the architect of record for the project, which places a 16-story building between the historic Continental Hotel, Arana Building, and De La Garza House on the 1.9-acre Continental Block along San Pedro Creek. Located at 110 S. Laredo St. in the Zona Cultural district, the 400,600-SF project is part of continued growth and redevelopment occurring on downtown San Antonio’s West Side. Rogers-O’Brien Construction was the general contractor for The Continental Residences and Kairoi Residential is the property manager.

CORPUS CHRISTI – Ashlar Development has retained Avison Young to market for sale development and investment opportunities in Whitecap Resort, a shovel-ready 240-acre, amenity-driven coastal master-planned boating community on North Padre Island in Corpus Christi. Ashlar is creating a pedestrian-friendly town center designed to serve affluent resort and second-home buyers. The development plan supports a diverse mix of uses, including a resort hotel with branded residences, residential and short-term rental communities, retail and entertainment, and multifamily housing. Canals have been completed, utilities are in place, and entitlements have been secured across all planned uses. Avison Young’s Chris Kilcullen, Mike Kennedy, James Nelson, Erik Edeen, and Michael Agnew are working on the assignment.

LUBBOCK – Aligned Data Centers broke ground on “Project Caprock,” a 540 MW, 313-acre data center campus in Hale County just outside of Abernathy, Texas. The site is comprised of 1.65M square feet of capacity across six facilities and is expected to infuse $5B into the regional economy.

MCALLEN, Texas – Nordstrom Rack plans to open a 31,000-SF store at Las Tiendas Shopping Center in McAllen, Texas, in fall 2026. Located off of Expressway 83 and South McColl Road, the shopping center is owned by Cielo Paso Las Tiendas and managed by MIMCO, LLC. Nordstrom operates eight Nordstrom and 27 Nordstrom Rack stores in Texas.

DALLAS – Dalfen Industrial acquired a 19-property, 1.38 million-SF industrial portfolio from Mapletree Investments for $208 million. The transaction was completed below replacement cost. Located across Dallas, Chicago, Indianapolis, and Cincinnati, the assets are 93% leased to 48 tenants including Cummins Inc., Techcess Solutions, WM Coffman Resources, and Legacy Foods Manufacturing.

IRVING, Texas – Texan Trades leased 9,565 SF in Gateway Business Center, 6005 Commerce Drive, Irving, from PHP Gateway II Venture LP. Kyle Espie of Bradford Commercial Real Estate Services represented the tenant. Chris Andler of Property Advisers Realty represented the landlord.

Nation

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Wayfair, a home products retailer, will open its first large-format store in Florida at Galleria Fort Lauderdale as part of the center’s comprehensive redevelopment. The 94,000-SF store is scheduled to open in late 2027.

NEW YORK – GTIS Partners and Hovnanian Enterprises have formed a $200 million joint venture to develop, construct and sell homes across a diversified portfolio of for-sale homebuilding communities. Under the joint venture, GTIS is investing $150 million of equity capital alongside Hovnanian contributing $50 million of the capital requirement for total build out costs projected at $545 million representing $617 million in home value.

Mark Your Calendar: Commgate’s annual Developer Showcase will be held April 29 from 4:30 to 7:00 PM at the Houston Country Club. The event will provide Houston’s brokerage community an overview of significant Houston area commercial real estate developments in a small-scale trade show format. For more information: www.Commgate.com

Houston Builders: On April 22, Green Builder Media is partnering with the Greater Houston Builders Association and housing industry legend Sam Rashkin to bring you a Housing 2.0 Workshop—a hands-on deep dive into how to build better homes at lower cost. Learn how to: Optimize design + construction workflows; Reduce waste and increase productivity; Simplify building processes without sacrificing performance; Deliver homes that are more efficient, resilient, and affordable. The day will include expert insights, builder discussions, networking, and a closing reception. Registration: https://members.ghba.org/ap/Events/Register/J5FDDgWfJCzC3

THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT PODCAST

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with Mike Spears of Lee & Associates Houston

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with Bob Parsley of Colliers Houston

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with Mark Davis of Davis Commercial

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with David Hightower of Midway

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with Alex Kamkar of Bold Fox Development

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with Brad McWhirter of Trahan Architects

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with Lacee Jacobs of Rebel Retail Advisors

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with Danny Rice of Colliers

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with Trey Odom of Avera

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with Kris Larson of Downtown Houston +

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with Jim Carman of Howard Hughes Holdings