Camden Property Trust Expands Presence at Greenway Plaza—but Switches Buildings

By Georgiana Mihaila, Associate Editor

Camden Property Trust—one of the largest publicly traded national multifamily developers—will soon be trading its office at 3 Greenway Plaza for the neighboring 11 Greenway Plaza. The company signed a lease for 86,733 square feet on floors 23 through 26 of the 31-story Class A office building.

Bob Boykin, Warren Savery and Bubba Harkins represented owner Crescent Crown Greenway Plaza SPV L.L.C., while Anthony Squillante, Chris Johnson, Jeremy Hunt and Mike Anzilotti represented Camden Property Trust.

“Camden’s growth over the years required that we relocate our headquarters from 3 Greenway Plaza,” said Keith Oden, Camden’s president. “After a lengthy review of available options, we decided that the best choice for the company and our team members was to relocate within Greenway Plaza. The convenient location, ease of ingress/egress and access to amenities made our decision to move to 11 Greenway very straightforward.”

The planning and design of Camden’s new space in Greenway Plaza is being conducted by Gensler, and the construction will be performed by E.E. Reed Construction L.P. Located in Houston’s Greenway Plaza submarket, 11 Greenway Plaza totals 745,956 square feet.

Greenway Plaza, Houston’s premier master-planned business development, is a 10-building complex featuring 4.3 million square feet of Class A office space. The campus is also home to The Shops at Greenway, which includes a unique selection of retail options and a full-service food court. Located just five miles southwest of downtown Houston, the 55-acre business park and mixed-use community includes residential condominiums, a luxury hotel and a comprehensive athletic/social club; it provides easy access to major thoroughfares and convenient transportation alternatives.

Image via http://www.greenwayplaza.com/

GID Development Reveals Phase Two of Regent Square Mixed-Use Project

By Georgiana Mihaila, Associate Editor

Following the August 2012 groundbreaking on its Regent Square mixed-use project, GID Development Group is now lining up plans for a second phase.  Phase Two will add an Alamo Drafthouse Cinema, another residential building and 15,000 square feet of restaurant space to the project, which is set in the heart of the Inner Loop.

Designed as a walkable mixed-use district featuring apartments, condominiums, retail shops, restaurants, entertainment venues, office space, parks and courtyards, Regent Square aims at becoming an icon of sophisticated urban planning.

GID Development kick-started the 4.2 million-square-foot mixed-use Regent Square development in August 2012, when construction began on the 290-unit luxury apartment tower The Sovereign. The 21-story residential tower, designed by Zeigler Cooper Architects, promises to deliver the most sophisticated set of amenities in the market. With initial occupancy slated for March 2014, The Sovereign has been designed to comply with LEED Silver standards.

Work on Phase Two will start in late 2013, with Alamo Drafthouse Cinema having already officially announced its presence at the location. Another sophisticated residential project featuring 160 apartments and a wide variety of amenities has also been included, as well as 15,000 square feet of restaurant space.

“Phase Two represents a vibrant component of Regent Square, featuring an exciting multi-family project and high-caliber tenants such as Alamo Drafthouse Cinema,” said James Linsley , president of GID Development Group. “The addition of this type of entertainment destination to Regent Square supports our vision to provide the best shopping, dining, entertainment, public space and walking neighborhood in Houston.”

Neal Berkowitz with Newmark Grubb Knight Frank mediated the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema lease.

Image courtesy of GID Development Group

Hines Tapped to Manage Three-Building Energy Corridor Portfolio

By Georgiana Mihaila, Associate Editor

Energy Tower I

Franklin Street Properties Corp. has retained international real estate firm Hines to manage its three-building office portfolio in the West Houston Energy Corridor.

The multi-tenant office portfolio comprises Energy Tower I—a 326,000-square-foot, 14-story building located at 11700 Katy Freeway; Phase I of The Offices at Park 10, a six-story building at 16285 Park Ten Place, with 157,000 square feet of space; and neighboring Phase II of The Offices at Park 10, located at 16290 Katy Freeway and totaling 157,000 square feet.

“Hines has enjoyed its relationship with Franklin Street Properties, managing buildings for FSP in Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas and Kansas City. Following our firm’s recent success with FSP at Phoenix Tower in Houston, we look forward to achieving our owner’s asset objectives through Hines’ property management expertise,” said General Property Manager Don Emerson, who will oversee Hines’ on-site management staff at each property.

The three-building portfolio is 100 percent leased, with Technip USA Holdings Inc. and Murphy Exploration and Production Co. occupying substantial portions of Energy Tower I and the Offices at Park 10, respectively.

According to Marcus & Millichap, Houston continues to rank among the tightest office markets in the nation. With above-average job creation, limited new supply and a highly active energy industry, investor demand for Houston properties will most likely rise over the next year alongside occupancy and rents. In high-demand areas such as the Energy Corridor and CBD, availability of large blocks of space has dwindled, and soon-to-be-vacated space should be met with healthy demand.

Image: Energy Tower I courtesy of Hines

Forum Energy Tech to Occupy 68% of New Duke Realty Building

By Georgiana Mihaila, Associate Editor

Duke Realty Corp.’s Houston office found a tenant for Sam Houston Crossing Two, the firm’s new, speculative suburban office building fronting the Sam Houston Tollway.

Forum Energy Technologies Inc.—a provider of manufactured technologies and applied products for the energy industry—signed a 108,639-square-foot lease and will be occupying the second and third floors of the building. The 108,639-square-foot lease amounts to 68 percent of the building.

Located between Highway 290 and Highway 249 on the Sam Houston Tollway, midway between the I-10 Energy Corridor and the new Exxon Mobil campus, Sam Houston Crossing Two has been targeting energy services firms that want to be close to industry clients, with Duke Realty’s efforts in this respect being deemed successful.

“This building will consolidate Drilling and Subsea personnel from four buildings, giving them an opportunity to work more closely together as a team, and supports our continued growth,” said Tom Simms, treasurer with Forum. “The Duke building appealed to us due to its location, easy access on the Sam Houston Tollway, visibility and attractive design.”

The 159,056-square-foot tilt-wall concrete-and-glass facility features large floor plates for flexibility in space planning and includes Class A finishes and fixtures. Forum will be moving in starting in July 2013.

Steve Hesse and Jeff Cairns with CBRE represented Forum in the transaction, while Cory Driskill, senior leasing representative, represented Duke Realty.

Another speculative development will soon claim ground at the southwest corner of the Sam Houston Beltway 8 Tollway and Highway 225. California-based The Carson Cos. recently broke ground on Carson Commerce Center, a three-building, 365,000-square-foot industrial project. With completion set for the end of the year, The Carson Co. chose Cadence McShane to be the general contractor for the project, while Powers Brown Architecture was named architect.

Image via Duke Realty’s Official Web site

Energy XXI Expands Footprint at One City Centre; Law Firm Moves In at BG Group Place

By Georgiana Mihaila, Associate Editor

Oil-and-gas exploration and production company Energy XXI Services L.L.C. has decided to expand its presence on the Main Street Corridor. The company has signed a lease expansion for 28,168 square feet at One City Centre, bringing its total footprint to 128,133 square feet.

Transwestern’s David Baker, executive vice president, represented landlord Beacon Investment Properties, which purchased the property on Sept. 20 from Behringer Harvard; Jason Wasaff with Wilson Wasaff Group L.L.C. represented the tenant.

One City Centre is a 29-floor, Class A office building totaling 609,000 square feet and located within walking distance of hotels, sporting events, convention facilities and Discovery Green Park. The strategic location on the Main Street Corridor is convenient to the Metro’s light-rail and bus routes.

Meanwhile, Downtown Houston’s newest office tower, BG Group Place, has achieved some recent leasing activity: Law firm BakerHostetler signed a 75,737-square-foot lease for floors 11 through 13 of the 46-story LEED Platinum building. The lease also includes a unique 10,000-square-foot, green rooftop deck for client events and firm functions.

The law firm will relocate from another downtown building when the lease commences in the third quarter of this year. With the signing of this lease, BG Group Place is 92 percent occupied. BakerHostetler was represented in lease negotiations by Mark O’Donnell, Derrell Curry and David Endelman of Studley. Chrissy Wilson, Allison Knight and Tyler Garrett represented Hines, the building’s developer, owner and manager.

Hines senior managing director John Mooz said, “We could not be more pleased with BakerHostetler choosing BG Group Place for their new home. They are an outstanding addition to an already world-class tenant roster.”

Image: BG Group Place, Courtesy of Hines