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Bates Arnot will lead Stream Realty Partners’ central region industrial development services division in his elevated role as managing director.
In his new role, Arnot will continue sourcing development opportunities throughout Texas and Colorado and other markets in the region. Arnot will manage the Industrial Development Services platform’s largest team, continue to source new development talent, and contribute to Stream’s national IDS platform’s leadership and overall growth strategy.
Arnot originally came to Stream, a national commercial real estate firm offering an integrated platform of services, as a young industrial leasing broker in Dallas in 2009. Green, a fellow leasing broker at the time, took the initiative as Arnot’s professional mentor and business partner. The duo saw great success together.
In 2013, Arnot left Stream to learn more about industrial development at Hillwood (a Perot Company), a multinational industrial, commercial, and residential real estate development company based in Dallas. While there, Arnot was responsible for leasing, land acquisitions, development, and property acquisitions in multiple markets, including DFW, Denver, Houston, Austin, and Memphis. He was involved with over 28 million square feet of leasing and 1,170 acres of land acquisitions, representing 14.5 million square feet of industrial development.
Armed with seven years of development experience at Hillwood, Arnot rejoined Stream in 2020 to help build its new Industrial Development Services platform. Since his return, the team has accumulated 10 current projects in the central region with a total cost basis of $1.1 billion. His most recent success was a start-to-finish development and forward-sale of a 300,000-square-foot industrial building to Westcore Properties executed earlier this year.
CBRE announces the sale of Cooper Street Plaza, a 91,856-square-foot shopping center located at 4619-4623 Cooper Street in Arlington, Texas. Vista Property Company purchased the property from a Texas based real estate investment trust.
Jared Aubrey and Michael Austry represented the seller in the marketing and sale of the property.
Located along I-20 in the middle of a dominant retail corridor in Arlington, the shopping center was 97.5% occupied at the time of sale. The center garnered significant investor interest due to its high-visibility, long-term triple net leases and below market rents. The center is anchored by K&G Mens Company and Office Max and features other prominent tenants including Black Rifle Coffee Company, UPS, State Farm Insurance and Ninja Sushi.
Transwestern Real Estate Services (TRS) and Quadrant Investment Properties (QIP) announce Moroch Partners, a Dallas-based full-service, independent marketing and communications agency, has signed a new, long-term 23,365-square-foot office lease at the Manufacturing District (MD), located at 147 Manufacturing St. The firm relocates from Hall Street at The Centrum and plans to move its employees into its new offices in 2024. Transwestern’s Paul Wittorf, Kim Brooks, Laney Delin and Collin Burwinkel represented QIP in lease negotiations. Jihane Boury and Clay Vaughn with Savills represented Moroch Partners.
Moroch Partners is a leading full-service, independent marketing and communications agency based in Dallas, with a presence in over 30 markets across North America. Moroch clients include McDonald’s, Planet Fitness, Six Flags Entertainment Corporation, Altitude Trampoline Park, Disney, Sony, Universal, Make-A-Wish Foundation and Midas, among others.
Moroch joins other tenants on-site at MD, including Alto, Smart Business Concepts and Kirksey. In June, Pennsylvania-based 84 Lumber, the nation’s largest privately held supplier of building materials, signed a 4,933-square-foot lease for its new western office headquarters. With the recent leases, MD is now more than 80% leased.
With tenant amenities such as a shared rooftop lounge featuring unobstructed panoramic views of downtown Dallas, Triumph’s Espresso & Whiskey, a pedestrian path that was re-envisioned from an abandoned rail spur, and The Grove, a shared outdoor community lounge with casual seating, lush landscaping and 6G Wi-Fi, amenities on-site at MD were carefully designed to create opportunities for tenants to work, socialize and enjoy outside of their office environments.
According to Transwestern research, the Design District has seen nearly $1 billion in private investment over the last 15 years. With top-tier local and out-of-market restaurants and new retail concepts recently announced, the area is one of Dallas-Fort Worth’s most widely sought-after locations.
For more images of the Manufacturing District, click here.
Nuveen Green Capital, a leader in sustainable commercial real estate financing solutions, and the Texas PACE Authority, the administrator of 92 PACE programs in Texas, along with CBRE, the global leader in commercial real estate services and investments, announced the closing of the Curio Collection by Hilton Hotel in San Antonio, Texas. This closing marks Texas’ largest C-PACE (Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy) transaction to date.
C-PACE is a creative financing mechanism that provides commercial property owners and developers access to low-cost, long-term, fixed-rate financing for energy efficiency, water conservation, renewable energy, and resiliency commercial real estate projects.
Located in downtown San Antonio’s Hemisfair District, the Curio Collection by Hilton Hotel is situated on roughly 1.5 acres near the intersection of South Alamo and Market streets. The ground-up development of this 17-story, luxury, full-service hotel will feature 200 guest rooms, ballroom and meeting spaces, a signature restaurant and bar, café, a rooftop bar, an underground speakeasy bar, terrace pool with cabanas, a full-service spa, a fitness center, ground floor retail space and a public garden. When complete, this hotel is slated to be the most luxurious in the area as the city continues its economic revival. Overland Partners Architects designed the full-service property, which will be owned and operated by Zachry Hospitality as a Curio Collection by Hilton.
The C-PACE proceeds will fund key sustainability measures including envelope, lighting, and plumbing.
The Texas PACE Authority administers Texas’ PACE statute by taking a market-based approach to energy finance and economic development by facilitating energy and water improvements that are both economically sound and environmentally friendly. The Texas PACE Act was passed by the Texas Legislature in 2013 and The Texas PACE Authority has facilitated $450 million in PACE financing throughout Texas.
Construction of the 200-room hotel is expected to begin this fall with a target to open its doors to guests in late 2025.
Industry veteran Chelby Sanders has joined Cresa, the world’s leading occupier-centric commercial real estate firm, as a managing principal, announced Sharon Morrison, managing principal, and Texas market leader. She will be based in the firm’s Dallas office.
A well-respected advisor who has negotiated some of the largest, highest-profile deals in the Dallas-Fort Worth area over the years, Sanders was most recently an executive vice president with CBRE’s transaction advisory services group. She focuses on corporate work, helping her clients navigate the complex, post-pandemic world of office occupancy. A prolific dealmaker, she and her team averaged more than 100 transactions per year for office users. During her career she has arranged more than 40 million square feet of transactions valued at $4.0 billion plus. Notable transactions Sanders has secured are: American Airlines’ 1.5 million-square-foot headquarters campus lease in Fort Worth; JC Penny’s 1.2 million-square-foot sale-leaseback in Plano; Charles Schwab’s 500,000-square-foot lease in Westlake; and Hilton Worldwide’s headquarters relocation from Los Angeles to Tysons Corner, VA. Her diverse client list also includes: Gainsco, Enovis, Riveron, KnollMiller, Goosehead Insurance and Brunswick.
While at CBRE, Sanders was awarded the Gary J. Beban Teamwork Award, which recognizes an individual’s multi-disciplinary approach to client service (2017). She was also an annual Americas and Dallas Top Producer.
Prior to CBRE, Sanders served as a vice president at JLL and a vice president at The Staubach Company.
Sanders is committed to philanthropic endeavors, and currently serves on the board of directors at Fair Park First, working to preserve and enhance Dallas’ cultural and civic landmark which serves as the permanent home of the State Fair of Texas. She also served as the chair for the annual Go Red for Women lunch, the American Heart Association’s signature women’s initiative, in 2015-16 and chair emeritus in 2016-17. In addition, she has devoted time to the YWCA of Metropolitan Dallas serving on its board of directors from 2006-2012.
Sanders earned a Bachelor of Science from the University of Texas at Tyler. A native Texan, Sanders and her husband own QB 6666’s Ranch in West Texas and are active cattle ranchers.
Cresa continues to grow its Texas operations and Sanders’ addition to the team is just the latest in a series of moves the firm has made to bolster its services in the state in the last 18 months. In 2022 Cresa expanded its Dallas footprint with the acquisition of esrp and in Austin with the acquisition of Elevate Growth Partners.
The Austin multifamily market continues to demonstrate resilience and attractive investment opportunities, despite challenges posed by a variety of factors. Geopolitical pressures, capital markets instability, recession fears, oversupply, softening apartment fundamentals and sector-specific job layoffs have influenced the market dynamics. In response, operators have shifted their focus from true rent growth to retaining residents and enhancing asset management and operations.
According to analysis by Institutional Property Advisors, Austin is experiencing an incoming supply wave, leading to an elevated pace of new unit additions. This surge in supply is expected to have a near-term impact on vacancy rates, raising them from the record lows reached in the first half of 2022. However, Austin’s population growth remains strong, with the metro projected to have the highest year-over-year inventory change since at least 2000. The influx of younger residents, particularly in the 20 to 34 age cohort, who are historically inclined to rent due to Austin’s heightened homeownership costs, will contribute to long-term property performance and validate the ample construction pipeline. Despite the temporary pressure on vacancy rates, Austin is still projected to outperform most other major markets in terms of net absorption in 2023.
Berkadia Senior Managing Director Kelly Witherspoon acknowledges the prevailing challenges in the market.
“The general tenor this year is hanging on to what you have,” he said. “I do believe true rent-growth is a secondary focus for most operators right now, rather, focused on retaining residents with a stronger eye on asset management and operations.”
Kelly Witherspoon
Witherspoon expresses gratitude for Berkadia’s holistic culture and growth, emphasizing the firm’s commitment to exceptional service and integrity.
“In Central Texas and Austin, we’ve created an amazing culture and will continue to provide our clients exceptional service with integrity, honesty and grit,” he said.
Berkadia’s expertise spans various property types, serving both institutional and private firms. From lease-up developments to older vintage value-add assets and land, Berkadia’s comprehensive capabilities make them a formidable player in the Austin market.
The company recently concluded a successful campaign for a larger, well-located 1990s vintage community in Austin that had never undergone a programmatic renovation.
“It had been owned for over 25 years, incredibly rare in Austin, and we had tremendous activity,” shared Witherspoon. “We had over 50 tours, over 30 offers and 500 confidentiality agreements executed.”
This exceptional response highlights the high demand for value-add opportunities in the market. Investors are keen to acquire properties with potential for rent premiums post-renovation, particularly in well-preserved assets from the 2000s to 2010s.
While there is still a thinner competitive pack at the top of the market, there are significant opportunities for investment.
“There were many campaigns in 2022 that didn’t materialize into transactions, which is incredibly rare for Austin,” Witherspoon explained. “In 2023, we’ve had very few of them, mainly due to sellers understanding the market is different.”
Although there is a bid-to-ask spread, indicating a difference in price expectations between buyers and sellers, the market still attracts numerous interested buyers. Austin’s multifamily market continues to be an appealing destination for investors seeking long-term growth and stability.
“It continues to be a competitive environment in Austin,” said Institutional Property Advisors Senior Managing Director of Investments Kent Myers. “We’ve had increased levels of transaction level activity and are starting to see institutional interest back in the market.”
Kent Myers
Myers highlights the substantial number of units currently under construction, leading to a considerable supply wave. Nevertheless, the market’s resilience is underpinned by Austin’s robust job growth and the current decline in permitting activity currently a -27% decrease year over year.
As the market continues to evolve, lower-cost areas are poised to receive increased demand. Austin’s strong net in-migration has benefitted outer cities that connect the market to San Antonio, resulting in an intertwined metropolitan area. San Marcos, for instance, boasts a vacancy rate lower than the overall metro and the lowest mean effective rent, showcasing the appeal of well-connected and cost-efficient locales. Additionally, urban areas with limited development pipelines, such as Northwest Austin, are well-positioned for growth. The upcoming Phase 2 of Apple’s campus in September is expected to create high-paying jobs, which will benefit Class A and B rentals in the area.
“Given the job growth in Austin and in-migration that we’re continuing to see, the market’s been extremely resilient,” Myers stressed. Even with the heightened level of supply previously referenced, we expect Austin to end the year with rent growth numbers slightly below 3%.
While challenges persist, the Austin multifamily market remains resilient and opportunities for investment abound. Firms including Berkadia and Institutional Property Advisors recognize the shifting dynamics of the market and are adapting their strategies to retain residents and optimize asset management. As Austin continues to experience robust population growth and net in-migration, the multifamily sector is poised for long-term success. The combination of ample construction, favorable demographic trends and the appeal of lower-cost areas indicates a promising outlook for the market.
