Whitestone to Expand its Texas Portfolio

By Razvan Cimpean

BLVD Place

Whitestone REIT has recently entered into agreements to purchase two properties in Texas for $204.6 million. Acquisitions of 221,557-square-foot Eldorado Plaza in McKinney and 216,944-square-foot BLVD Place in Uptown Houston are expected to close in May.

Located on the north end of Dallas’ Platinum Corridor district, Eldorado Plaza offers 1.86 acres of developable land, where the new owner can build an estimated 24,000 square feet of additional space. Tenants at the Class A lifestyle center include Starbucks, Belk, Clothes Mentor and Trader Joe’s. As of April 15, occupancy at Eldorado was 97 percent. Whitesone expects to fund a part of the purchase of its seventh property in the Dallas region with borrowings under its unsecured revolving credit facility.

Located at 1800 Post Oak Blvd., BLVD Place includes approximately 1.4 acres of land where Whitestone can build up to 137,000 square feet of additional space. Here, the company plans to develop a six-story mixed-use property, which is expected to feature 46,000 square feet of retail space on the first two floors and 91,000 square feet of office space on the next four floors. Whitestone estimates to spend $45 million for this second phase of construction at BLVD Place.

The Class A lifestyle center was 99 percent leased as of April 16 and offers 2.800 parking spots. Tenants include Whole Foods, Frost Bank, Verizon and Elaine Turner. The company plans to use $80 million of asset level mortgage financing to finance a part of the purchase of its 28th property in the Houston area.

Image courtesy of BLVD Place