Retail leasing has really picked up in Houston and its surrounding suburbs such as Katy, Manvel and Pasadena. Restaurants of all service levels, especially, are expanding their footprint in the MSA, along with grocery stores, entertainment venues and even jewelers. Retailers are drawn to mixed-use development sites in the market, which typically guarantee all-day traffic.
Locally based brokerage firm Baker Katz negotiated seven new retail leases for Einstein Bros. Bagels in the greater Houston area. The spaces are located within the Tanglewood and Garden Oaks neighborhoods in Houston proper, as well as in the suburbs of Katy, Conroe, Humble, Tomball and League City. The average deal size is 2,000 s.f. Landlord representatives in the various lease negotiations included CBRE, Excel Commercial Real Estate, NewQuest, Fidelis, Blue Ox Group and SVN | J. Beard Real Estate.
Three new tenants have debuted at East River, a 150-acre mixed-use development in Houston by Midway. Ayna Jewels and Tomi Jewelry have opened boutique stores that span 1,600 s.f. and 880 s.f., respectively. The Houston Maritime Center & Museum, which features exhibits, artifacts and interactive displays within a redeveloped space also recently opened.
McDonald’s will open a new restaurant in Manvel, located south of Houston. The fast-food giant has ground-leased a 43,720-s.f. pad site at The Shops at Sedona Lakes from local owner-operator NewQuest. The Retail Strategy represented McDonald’s.
NewQuest also signed leases with four food-and-beverage tenants at Texas Heritage Marketplace, the firm’s $400M mixed-use development in the western Houston suburb of Katy. The tenants are Tex-Mex restaurant Escalante’s that will take up 5,005 s.f., pizzeria Tony C’s that will occupy 4,900 s.f., Japanese food concept Aji Izakaya will open in a 2,800-s.f. unit and confectionary Kilwins grabs a 1,400-s.f. spot. Texas Heritage Marketplace’s green space is strategically positioned close to two anchors, Target and EoS Fitness. NewQuest has encircled the five-acre component with 39,811 s.f. of premium retail space, of which half is either signed or in negotiations at this early stage of development.
TakeOff Adventure Park will open a 60,000-s.f. entertainment venue at Fairmont Parkway Shopping Center in Pasadena, an eastern suburb of Houston. The space was formerly occupied by Palace Social, and the venue will feature a ninja course, foam pit, climbing walls, trampolines, arcade and party rooms. The space is between a Klub Fitness and Goodwill. NewQuest represented the landlord in the lease negotiations. KW Commercial Signature Realty represented the tenant. Construction is underway, and the opening is slated for next spring.
Sprouts Farmers Market opened a 29,105-s.f. grocery store in the southwestern Houston suburb of Richmond. The Phoenix-based grocer joins LA Fitness, At Home and Academy Sports + Outdoors as the anchor tenants at Waterview Town Center, a 134-acre development. Local developer Read King owns Waterview Town Center.
