RETURN OF THE MALL

MAY 5, 2011 8:08 AM, BY ELAINE MISONZHNIK, RETAIL TRAFFIC ASSOCIATE EDITOR

The enclosed regional mall—the uniquely American retail property that sprang to life in the 1950s and 1960s—has been declared dead (or dying) for years.

Stephen D. Lebovitz, president and CEO of CBL & Associates Properties Inc., a Chattanooga, Tenn.-based regional mall REIT with an 82.1-million-square-foot portfolio, recalls conversations with tenants in the not-so-distant past in which retailers insisted their future lay elsewhere—at lifestyle centers or town centers or mixed-use projects. The experience was not limited to CBL—mall executives across the board were having similar discussions with their tenants. At the time, many believed the format had outgrown its usefulness and was out of step with modern customers. “A lot of the retailers went so far as to say they prefer lifestyle centers over regional malls,” Lebovitz says.

The list of grievances was long.

Malls were too large.

Their temperature-controlled environments were too artificial.

Department stores—the original conceit around which the concept was developed—were not the draws they once were.

Mall parking lots were too sprawling and mall parking garages too arduous to navigate.

Formats like power centers, lifestyle centers and mixed-use facilities were newer, hipper and more convenient.

And, of course, there was the constant growth of internet retail, which continues to slowly eat away at traditional retail channels.

In response to these factors, mall owners ...

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Master planning begins for Rio South Texas research, education park

Source: McAllen Economic Development Corp 

A research and education park for the Rio South Texas region is becoming a reality now that the master planning process is underway. Broaddus Planning of Austin is expected to complete the master plan by fall 2011. 
The park will be located on 400 acres of public and private land near the McAllen Foreign Trade Zone. Located across from Reynosa, Mexico, it is one of the nation’s most active trade zones. 

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STC Stands Out in New Hispanic Outlook Ranking

McAllen Economic Development Corporation Blog

South Texas College ranks number two on the inaugural list of “Top 10 Four-Year Schools Awarding the Most Associate Degrees to Hispanics.” The national education journal Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education released the rankings in its May publication.

The publication states it singled out these schools because they “boldly go where few community colleges have yet to venture,” and are considered as pioneers because they are community colleges that offer bachelor degrees.

STC is the only Texas college that made the rankings, sharing the top 10 spotlight with colleges from California, Florida, Illinois and New York. Miami Dade College ranked at the top of the list.

STC is one of only three community colleges in Texas accredited to offer baccalaureate degrees. The college introduced its bachelor’s program in 2005 and has witnessed continual growth with two degree paths—Bachelor of Applied Technology in Technology Management and a Bachelor of Applied Technology in Computer and Information Technologies.

“It’s very exciting for our faculty, staff and students to be recognized at this level,” said STC President Shirley A. Reed. “We are leading the nation in helping students complete degrees because of our commitment to exceptional student services and instruction.”

South Texas College offers more than 100 degree and ...

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New Powder Coating Company in McAllen MSA

MEDC

McAllen, TX. April 2011 - KAZAM announced in April the signing of a lease for 20,000 square feet of manufacturing and warehouse space in the industrial zone of McAllen, Texas where they will be providing manufacturing processes such as powder coating (5-stage wash line) and silk screening. A formal ribbon cutting and grand opening ceremony will be held at a later date.

KAZAM’s parent company, Karlee Corporation, is headquartered in Garland, TX and this site will be the 5th plant under the Karlee Corporation umbrella. In addition, Karlee has a manufacturing facility already in McAllen TX where they have sheet metal manufacturing and stamping. This new division, KAZAM will enhance Karlee’s ability to provide extended services for their product and give them the capability to service the region with a process that is not located within a significant radius.

“We are pleased to announce that we are expanding our manufacturing capabilities,” commented Luis Zeledon, Site Manager for Karlee and KAZAM in McAllen. “Labor costs and strategic location were the main drivers for us to set up the operation in McAllen. There is no other service like the one we will be offering that is open to multiple customers and not captive to one operation.”

KAZAM’s investment of approximately 1 million dollars will ultimately generate 25 jobs in McAllen once it is in full operation, expected to be by the end of 2011.

McAllen Economic Development Corporation has worked with KAZAM to ensure their smooth transition. “To support the new project and Karlee, we have been connecting Luis with potential customers,” mentioned Megan Davila, Business Development Specialist at McAllen EDC. “As with any new company we help establish in the McAllen area, we want to do what we can to ensure they are successful here.”

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Nolana Ave. Expansion Project

How Gross is Your Lease?

By: Ted Parcel

There are multiple ways to divide up the costs of leasing a property and of course every one of the alternatives is utilized somewhere.  This discussion is about the most common types of arrangements for dividing up the expenses.

A typical property has components of rent, property taxes, insurance, maintenance, utilities and common area charges (CAM).  So how does one divide the costs?

Single Net Lease- The tenant pays rent plus property taxes

Double Net Lease- The tenant pays rent, property taxes and insurance

Triple Net Lease- The tenant pays rent, insurance, and maintenance.  (This is often confused with an absolute net lease.)

Absolute net lease- Tenant pays rent plus all expenses including insurance, maintenance, utilities and common area charges. 

Modified Gross Lease- The tenant pays rent, CAM and utilities.  The landlord pays the rest

Gross Lease- the tenant pays rent and the landlord pays the expenses

Full Service Lease- Tenant pays insurance, plus excess utilities actually used over a base amount and increases in expenses over a base year amount.

Need help understanding your lease or the leasing process in your search for space? Contact one of our commercial real estate professionals to help you. Visit our website to learn more  www.nairgv.com 

About the Author:

Scope of Service Experience Mr. Parcel has more than thirty years of varied commercial experience in the technical industries. Experienced with chemicals, pharmaceuticals, oil and gas, paper and agricultural markets and supplies to these markets. Former Corporate Real Estate Director, Profit Center Manager and Procurement Manager. Education MBA, Finance. University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School, Philadelphia, PA BS, Chemical Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, DE Completed Strategic Marketing Management at the Harvard Business School. Background & Experience NAI Global, Princeton, NJ Senior Vice President, Corporate Services Responsible for the NAI Global Corporate Services function including Account Management and Transaction Management and the development of best practices.

McAllen's Bentsen Road Expansion

New Library Update - May 2011

CoStar Group buys LoopNet for $860M | Washington Business Journal

Washington Business Journal - by Sarah Krouse

Commercial real estate data company CoStar Group Inc. has acquired San Francisco-based competitor LoopNet Inc. for $860 million, doubling CoStar’s paid subscribers to 160,000.

The acquisition brings D.C.-based CoStar’s total active listings to 2 million.

CoStar will fund the deal with a $415 million loan and $50 million revolving credit facility from J.P. Morgan.

Under the deal, announced Wednesday and expected to close by the end of 2011, LoopNet shareholders will receive $16.50 per share and .037 shares of CoStar stock for each share of LoopNet stock they own.

The deal represents a 31 percent premium to LoopNet’s closing price Tuesday. LoopNet’s stock ended Wednesday at $14.37 per share.

CoStar's stock ended Wednesday at $61.38 per share, up 1.88 percent from its previous close.

LoopNet is a content partner of American City Business Journals, parent company of the Washington Business Journal.

CoStar, which was founded in ...

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Read more: CoStar Group buys LoopNet for $860M | Washington Business Journal 

Forbe's Best Cities For Jobs: No. 4 McAllen-Edinburg-Mission

By Joel Kotkin and Michael Shires

Forbes

These may be far from the best of times, but they are no longer the worst. Last year’s annual “Best Cities for Jobs” list was by far the most dismal since we began compiling our rankings almost five years ago. Between 2009 and 2010, only 13 of 397 metropolitan areas experienced any growth at all. For this year’s list, which measured job growth in the period between January 2010 and January 2011, most of the best-performing areas experienced actual employment increases — even if they were modest.

For Forbes’ list of the best cities for jobs, we ranked all 398 current metropolitan statistical areas, based on employment data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported from November 1999 to January 2011. Rankings are based on recent growth trends, mid-term growth and long-term growth and momentum. We also broke down rankings by size —small, medium and large — since regional economies differ markedly due to their scale.

Reflecting the importance of the war effort in stimulating local economies, command of this year’s best place for jobs was handed to the Army from the Marines. Killeen-Temple-Fort Hood, Texas, shot up to No. 1 from No. 4, while Jacksonville, N.C., last year’s first-place winner and home to Camp Lejeune, dropped to 19th place.

The Best Big Cities for Jobs

The Best Mid-Size Cities for Jobs

The Best Small Cities for Jobs

Once again the best places for jobs tended to be smaller communities where incremental improvements can have a relatively large impact. Eighteen of the top 20 cities on our list were either small (under 150,000 nonfarm jobs) or mid-sized areas (less than 450,000 jobs).

But no place displayed more vibrancy than Texas. The Lone Star State dominated the three size categories, with the No. 1 mid-sized city, El Paso (No. 3 overall, up 22 places from last year) and No.1 large metropolitan area Austin (No. 6 overall), joining Killeen-Temple-Fort Hood (the No. 1 small city) atop their respective lists.

Texas also produced three other of the top 10 smallest regions, including energy-dominated No. 4 Midland, which gained 41 places overall, and No. 10 Odessa, whose economy jumped a remarkable 57 places. It also added two other mid-size cities to its belt: No. 2 Corpus Christi and No. 4 McAllen-Edinburg-Mission.

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