JLL Capital Markets secured construction financing for 635 Exchange, a Class-A industrial development totaling 595,688 square feet across three buildings in Dallas, Texas.

JLL represented the borrower, a joint venture between Creation Equity and PGIM Real Estate, to secure the financing through a 50/50 syndication between Veritex Bank and Comerica Bank.

The 635 Exchange development occupies a 36.27-acre site at the corner of Interstate 635, the vital loop around Dallas, and Interstate 35E, a crucial north-south artery connecting Texas from Laredo to the Minnesota border. This strategic positioning provides tenants with swift access to more than 7.8 million consumers within a 60-minute drive and a rich talent pool of 2.6 million workers within a 30-minute commute. The development is also less than 20 minutes from Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport and Dallas Love Field, further enhancing air freight capabilities for potential tenants.

Scheduled for completion in October 2026, the industrial park comprises three rear-loading distribution buildings of 144,216 square feet, 208,000 square feet and 243,472 square feet with clear heights of 32 to 36 feet and truck courts ranging from 130 to 185 feet. Additionally, the development features 100 dock doors, six drive-in bays, 498 car parking spaces and 132 trailer parking spots across the three structures.

The JLL Capital Markets Debt Advisory team was led by Managing Director Greg Napper, Associate Luke Rogers and Analyst Charlie Mossy.

The record-setting days of the pandemic era might be over, but the nation’s self-storage market remains a strong one.

That’s the highlight from Cushman & Wakefield’s first-half 2025 Self Storage Market Report, a report that shows a sector adjusting to normalized transaction volumes, stable capitalization rates, and moderated rent growth after the record-setting activity of the pandemic era.

Total transaction volume reached $2.85 billion in the first half of 2025, less than 1% higher than the same period in 2023 and consistent with pre-pandemic trends. Between 2020 and 2022, self storage investment surged to nearly $50 billion, far exceeding the $35 billion transacted in the seven years prior.

“Investor interest in self storage remains strong, even as the market moves into a steadier cycle,” said Tim Garey, Managing Director and Practice Group Leader, Self Storage at Cushman & Wakefield. “Valuations have moderated, but long-term fundamentals and demand drivers continue to underpin confidence in the sector.”

Key findings from the report include:

• Valuations: After peaking at $174 per square foot in Q1 2023, valuations declined for six consecutive quarters to an average of $159 psf in Q2 2025, down 12 percent from peak levels.
• Capitalization Rates: Self storage cap rates averaged 5.8 percent over the past six quarters, with Class A assets ranging from 5.0–5.5 percent and Class B ranging from 5.5–6.5 percent.
• Occupancy: National occupancy has held steady at around 90 percent since 2023, with regional variations between 89 and 92 percent.
• Rents: Asking rents, which reached a peak of $134 psf in Q3 2022, have since ranged between $124 and $132 psf, averaging $127 psf. In Q2 2025, the Pacific and Northeast subregions posted the highest averages at $193 psf and $154 psf, respectively.
• Construction: Elevated costs, potential tariffs on materials, and tight debt liquidity have slowed development, with more projects placed on hold in Q2 2025.
• Investor Sentiment: In Cushman & Wakefield’s survey of industry leaders, 56 percent expect little to no change in cap rates over the next 12 months. While 39 percent cited the housing market as the top concern, nearly two-thirds of investors plan to be net buyers over the next year.

“While market conditions have normalized, the appetite for self-storage remains resilient,” added Garey. “Investors are increasingly targeting secondary markets and value-add opportunities, positioning the sector for steady activity into 2026.”

Walton Global brokered a 120-acre land sale in Texas’s Caldwell County.

The property, known as Cotton Ridge, was sold to Stafford Development and is part of the larger Cotton Center Master Plan that spans over 2,000 acres. 

Cotton Ridge is located directly off Highway 1984, just outside of the city of San Marcos and about a 16-minute drive from the city’s vibrant center. In December 2024, Stafford Development purchased 88 acres from Walton Global in the nearby Cotton Gateway community to serve as a utility lot to service nearby residential and commercial developments. 

Blacktop Industrial Trust acquired Rosslyn Business Park, a fully leased, heavy industrial campus in Northwest Houston.

Blacktop acquired the property from Houston-based Clay Development & Construction, Inc.  Blacktop closed the transaction in partnership with a leading global alternative investment firm with dedicated real estate investment vehicles.

Blacktop was founded in 2024 by real estate industry veterans Thomas A. Rizk and Roger W, Thomas and is led by Ricardo Cardoso and Christian Vergilio.

Rosslyn Business Park is a 337,705-square-foot, 45-acre campus that is fully leased to seven tenants in 11 buildings in the Northwest Houston Submarket, one of the tightest industrial manufacturing submarkets in the Houston metropolitan area.

The campus features abundant outdoor storage space (IOS) and the buildings feature clear heights ranging from 20-55 feet, heavy power, overhead cranes, reinforced concrete floors, sprinkler systems and drive through capability with oversized grade level doors. The site is conveniently located next to several major highway systems and is currently occupied by established industrial manufacturing users with decades-long operational histories in fabrication, engineering, and energy sectors, including Baker Hughes, KoneCranes and Amogy.

Houston’s industrial manufacturing sector continues to demonstrate remarkable strength. The Northwest submarket recorded 1.3 million square feet of absorption in the second quarter of 2025 – the strongest quarterly performance since 2021 – while maintaining the lowest vacancy rate in Houston at just 4.7%. Manufacturing requirements now represent nearly 35% of total tenant demand in Houston, with vacancy in manufacturing facilities at just 1.3% as of the second quarter of 2025. This imbalance between robust demand and limited new supply positions assets like Rosslyn Business Park for long-term growth.

Blacktop’s strategy is underpinned by proprietary research identifying a persistent supply-demand imbalance in functional, infrastructure-heavy industrial properties, primarily across the Sunbelt, Midwest and Mid-Atlantic. Blacktop is targeting assets that are crane-served, rail-connected, and power-intensive at discounts to replacement cost while new construction is constrained by zoning restrictions, high capital requirements, and extended permitting timelines. Secular tailwinds including reshoring, investment in energy and transportation infrastructure, labor cost advantages, and migration into pro-business environments are fueling demand for these specialized facilities.

Blacktop is backed by Rizk Ventures, a leading special situation platform with investments in real estate, technology and healthcare  Founded in 2000 by Thomas A. Rizk, the firm has deep roots in the commercial real estate sector and currently owns and operates properties across the US totaling 26 million square feet.  Rizk Ventures builds fully integrated real estate businesses around seasoned entrepreneurs who bring deep expertise in their asset classes while leveraging technology to enhance returns and elevate customer experiences.

JLL Capital Markets served as financial advisor to Blacktop on this transaction.

How hot is the industrial outdoor storage market today? A new report from Newmark says that rent growth in this sector has increased an impressive 123% since 2020.

That easily outpaces the 58% increase in rent that bulk warehouse product has seen during the same time, according to Newmark’s report, Lots to Gain: Industrial Outdoor Storage Outperforming Bulk Warehouse.

Newmark estimates that there are 1.4 million acres of industrial outdoor storage space across the United States. For reference, that’s an area roughly equivalent to the state of Delaware. Newmark estimates that a conservative estimate of readily tradeable industrial outdoor storage real estate in that footprint signals a $200 billion market capitalization.

The vacancy rate for industrial outdoor storage space, known by its abbreviation of IOS, remains low. Newmark reported that it stood at around 5% as of the middle of 2025. That’s because of both strong demand and a lack of new IOS space.

At the same time, the vacancy rate for bulk warehouse space had risen to slightly more than 8%, another example of IOS space outperforming bulk warehouse.

Don’t expect this trend to change anytime soon, either. In its report, Newmark says that land density and zoning issues are driving more bulk warehouse occupiers to IOS. This is especially true in dense markets such as Chicago, where a lack of available land has pushed rents higher for bulk warehouse space. This has caused some tenants to lease IOS space instead.

Zoning restrictions also frequently make it difficult for developers in denser markets to add bulk warehouse space. Users that can’t find bulk warehouse space in tighter markets might choose IOS as a replacement.

Because of these factors, the number of acquisitions of IOS space by large equity managers is rising. Some examples include Alterra IOS and J.P. Morgan Asset Management’s sale of a $490 million, 51-property IOS portfolio and Realterm’s $277 million portfolio acquisition from Brookfield. Catalyst added to this activity by closing a $163.5 million sale of 18 IOS properties.

During the past five years, the number of IOS properties reported in the National Council of Real Estate Investment Fiduciaries’ Expanded National Property Index more than doubled. Five-year annualized returns in this sector now exceed those of the broader industrial sector by 126 basis points, Newmark said in its report.

Aransas County, Texas, is proud to announce the acquisition of the Copano Cove Ranch, also historically known as the Bailey Ranch, a significant conservation project funded entirely through the Texas General Land Office’s (GLO) Coastal Management Program under Contract #24-099-005-E379.

This acquisition was wholly funded through a grant from the GLO providing Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006 (GOMESA) funding, made available to the State of Texas and awarded under the Texas Coastal Management Program.

On July 31, 2025, Aransas County officially closed on the 950-acre property located at 1751 FM 1781 in Rockport, Texas. This expansive tract of native prairie, marshes, and wetlands will now be preserved forever as protected natural habitat.

“This is a major win for Aransas County,” said County Judge Ray Garza. “Preserving this land protects vital habitat, expands public access, and creates opportunities for ecotourism and education that will benefit our community for generations. I’m grateful to all the partners who stayed committed to getting this across the finish line.”

The property is protected by a conservation easement held by the North American Land Trust (NALT). NALT has been actively protecting land in Texas for 20 years, with over 6,200 acres protected on the Texas Gulf Coast. The property boasts over 2,700 linear feet of Copano Bay shoreline, 200+ acres of estuarine and marine wetlands, and more than 100 acres of palustrine emergent wetlands, all now protected under a conservation easement held by the NALT. The land also serves as a critical natural drainage area for one of the most developed watersheds in Aransas County, providing invaluable flood mitigation and stormwater management benefits.

A Community-Driven Effort

The vision for this acquisition was born from the collaborative efforts of Aransas First Land Trust and the Aransas County Road & Bridge Department. Early champions of the project— Shelly Steckler, Maureen Crocker, and Dr. Earl Matthew of Aransas First—partnered with Katherine “Kat” Comeaux, Development Services Coordinator at Road & Bridge, to identify the

ranch as a prime candidate for acquisition. Together, they developed and submitted the successful grant application.

Janae Evans, the broker representing the seller, remarked:

“This was one of the most complex transactions in my 30+ year career in ranch/commercial real estate, but the conservation value of this particular property made the 21-month contract period worth the wait. This iconic property undoubtedly will become a unique destination for ecotourism, for generations to come.”

Evans continued:

“This is biodiversity on full display; the property is widely known for its magnificent wildlife and its natural vegetation, which is diminishing in our region. The seller’s dedication to conservation, ability to provide an expansive cache of due diligence materials, and their willingness to extend deadlines when required, allowed this transaction to come to fruition, in addition to a lot of hard work by dedicated folks on both sides of the transaction. I want to extend special recognition and gratitude to Judge Ray Garza who held the course through all stages, as well as Commissioner Bob Dupnik and the other county commissioners who were extremely supportive, along with the good folks at County Road & Bridge, especially Kat Comeaux without whom this transaction would not have happened.”

Partnerships That Made It Happen

This milestone acquisition represents a tradition of public-private partnership and environmental stewardship:

• Meghan Martinez, Project Manager/Natural Resources Specialist with the GLO’s Coastal Management Program, kept the project on track through all stages of due diligence and contract execution.
• Patty Kennedy, Southeast Program Director for NALT, provided expert insight into the intricacies of the conservation easement and its lasting protections.
• The sellers, EVC-CC Land Holdings and Rockport Property Entity, LLC, and their counsel were fully supportive of preserving the property’s ecological and public access values.
• John Bell of Wood, Boykin & Wolter in Corpus Christi represented Aransas County, offering essential legal guidance throughout the acquisition process.

Looking Forward

Aransas County is currently developing a land management plan for responsible public access and ecotourism opportunities that align with habitat preservation goals. The County envisions a future where this unique landscape educates the public, promotes sustainable recreation, and remains a sanctuary for wildlife.

The Copano Cove Conservation Area lies within the Mid‐coast Barrier Islands and Coastal Marshes ecoregion, part of the Gulf Coast Prairies and Marshes. According to The Nature Conservancy, “The 600-mile-long region abounds in superlatives: the longest barrier island system on Earth, the most important fish nursery in the gulf, the largest hypersaline lagoon

known to man. The numbers and types of birds seen here rival those found anywhere else in North America; the coastline provides critical stopover sites for millions of migrating birds. Nearly 1,000 species of wildflowers live here, and the area’s diversity of butterflies and reptiles in renowned.”

With this acquisition, Aransas County solidifies its role as a steward of the Texas coast, protecting a priceless resource for future generations.