Taylor Starnes Hired at CapRock Partners

Taylor Starnes joins CapRock Partners as Vice President of Acquisitions for the Central Region. He leads CapRock’s acquisition efforts in Texas with a focus on existing value-added industrial asset acquisitions and ground-up industrial development opportunities. In his new role, Starnes oversees all Texas acquisitions and will be building out an acquisition team that covers all major industrial markets in the state.

Newmark arranges sale and financing of value-add multifamily asset near Downtown Austin

Newmark has arranged the sale and financing of South Congress Commons, a 68-unit value-add multifamily asset located minutes from Downtown Austin, Texas. The asset was acquired by an affiliate of Narrow Road Group, an Austin-based investor, operator and developer of local residential real estate.

Newmark Director Chase Easley was retained by seller Firm Capital to market the sale, which resulted in Newmark’s second successful closing of this asset. Vice Chairman Anthony Tarter of Newmark’s Debt, Equity & Structured Finance group helped arrange the financing on behalf of the buyer.

Located at 126 W. Alpine Road, South Congress Commons is a garden-style property offering an array of amenities to its residents, including a fully fenced dog park, a courtyard space, an outdoor grilling and picnic area, laundry facilities and spacious studio and one-bedroom floor plans. New ownership of the property has the opportunity to revamp both unit interiors and community amenities, positioning it to compete effectively with newer properties in the market.

Situated on 1.98 acres, South Congress Commons is conveniently located just over two miles from Austin’s CBD and enjoys proximity to the city’s South Congress (SoCo) district, one of the county’s most famous corridors lined with vibrant nightlife, retail boutiques and live music venues. The property also benefits from a strong local economic landscape, with an average household income exceeding $111,800 and an average home value of $523,704 within a three-mile radius, according to the U.S. Census Bureau in 2023.

The NRP Group celebrates groundbreaking for new affordable community in Schertz

The NRP Group’s commitment to creating high-quality housing continues with a new 300-unit apartment community in Schertz, Texas, known as Aviator 1518. It is the first-ever affordable housing development created through a partnership between the Schertz Housing Authority and The NRP Group. 

Located at 9120 E. FM 1518 N., Aviator 1518 rent will range from $706 to $2,245 per month for one to four-bedroom floorplans. The development name is inspired by Randolph Air Force Base and its relationship to the rich history of Schertz. Amenities will include a playground, pool, clubhouse and fitness center. 

Units in the complex’s three-story central building are built with elevator-accessible design, and the community is located within the Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City Independent School District boundaries, ensuring families with children have access to quality education.

The project is financed by 4% housing tax credits allocated by the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs Additional development partners include Bank of America, Bexar County, Texas Home Collaborative, Coats Rose, MTR Engineering and Alta Architects.

Aviator 1518 is slated for completion in 2026, with pre-leasing beginning in 2025.

New ownership and leasing team leads to a flurry of office leases at 5601 Executive Drive in Las Colinas

Cushman & Wakefield announced that, representing Novel Office, the firm’s Dallas Agency Leasing team led by Cynthia Cowen and Rodney Helm has closed office-leasing transactions of nearly 50,000 square feet at 5601 Executive Drive in Las Colinas.

Novel acquired the eight-story, 166,592-square-foot building in 2022 and immediately renovated the property, adding a new 50-seat conference center, a new 10-seat boardroom, and a new tenant lounge, all designed to increase productivity and convenience. At the same time, Novel selected Cowen and Helm to lead leasing efforts.

Subsequently, leasing efforts at 5601 Executive Drive have yielded nearly 50,000 square feet of transactions, with new tenants accounting for approximately 45,000 square feet.

New tenants include HireWorks, with 2,894 square feet; International Association of Venue Managers, with 2,658 square feet; Yates Construction, with 6,978 square feet; along with eight more credit tenants.

In addition to recent renovations, 5601 Executive Drive’s features and amenities include: new spec suites, glass-wall options and customizable spaces for full and partial floors, complimentary 2D/3D space planning, best-in-market rates, and a 4/1,000-square-foot parking ratio.

New industrial park in Fort Worth fully leased; building sells to Dot Foods

Stonemont Financial Group, a private real estate investment firm specializing in industrial development, acquisitions and net lease investments, announced that it sold a 218,000-square-foot industrial warehouse to Dot Foods and fully leased an additional 267,000-square-foot warehouse to Giti Tire USA at a new two-building industrial park in Fort Worth, Texas. Both transactions were finalized before completion of construction, which began in Q2 2022.

OmniCable, which was acquired by Dot Foods in 2019, will occupy Building 2 at the industrial center located at 2201 Stonemont Way off Harmon Road in North Fort Worth. OmniCable approached Stonemont to purchase the building during construction and will use the facility for its expansion into Texas, which is expected to become a key focus market for the company given the continued population and jobs boom occurring across the state.

Stonemont also leased the larger Building 1 to Giti Tire USA, which will move into the facility in November. Giti is a global tire manufacturing and distribution company headquartered in Singapore. Similar to OmniCable, Giti signed a lease for the warehouse well before construction was completed. 

According to CBRE, the Dallas-Fort Worth industrial market saw its 52nd consecutive quarter of positive net absorption in Q3 of this year, with developers delivering more than eight million square feet of new product. The pre-leased rate for development under construction also increased last quarter, from 17.4% to 21.2%. The CBRE report shows the majority of leasing interest comes from 3PLs, manufacturing and wholesale trade users.

Blaine Kelly with CBRE Atlanta represented OmniCable and Dot Foods in the purchase of Building 2. Becky Thompson with Lee & Associates represented Stonemont in the transactions. Clay Balch and David Eseke of Cushman & Wakefield Dallas and Andrew Morrow and Luke Rivera of Cushman & Wakefield Los Angeles represented Giti Tire USA.

Partners Real Estate arranges sale of 12,970-square-foot retail property in San Antonio

Partners Real Estate (Partners), one of the largest independent commercial real estate firms in Texas, arranged the sale of a 12,970-square-foot retail property located at 2714 West Ave. in San Antonio.

Partners’ Landan Dory represented the seller, HW West Ave LP in the transaction. The buyer was represented by Roxana Tofan.