The Situation
AQUILA’s industrial leasing team was working with Titan Development on the preleasing of Innovation Business Park Building III in Hutto, Texas. The 152,234-square-foot building was 61% preleased and currently under construction.
Separately at this same time, Dogwood Industrial Properties, the industrial investment arm of global private investment firm TPG, engaged AQUILA’s commercial real estate investment team to source potential Austin-area acquisition opportunities for their first investment in the Texas market.
Sourcing an industrial property in the Austin market was a challenging task, given the small size of the Austin industrial market, especially compared to the Dallas and Houston markets. The limited supply meant any acquisition opportunities were typically highly competitive.
The Solution
Because of AQUILA’s relationship with both parties, we were able to connect the two and help each party navigate an off-market transaction that had favorable results for both groups.
The sale of Innovation Business Park Building III from Titan to Dogwood closed in December 2020, and the project was delivered that same month.
The Results
Dogwood kept AQUILA on to lease the project, and AQUILA quickly secured a tenant for the remaining 58,921 square feet within two months of delivery, ensuring little downtime and minimal lease-up risk.
This was an important deal as it was Dogwood’s first investment in the Texas market. Dogwood was a first mover in a wave of both national and global investment firms looking to take a stake in the Austin industrial market. The Hutto acquisition opened the door to future investment, and Dogwood has since gone on to close multiple transactions in Texas including an additional recently closed acquisition in the Austin area.
Continued investment in the Titan Innovation Business Park development promises a major economic impact on the City of Hutto. Since the park’s conception, Titan Development has broadened its scope and now plans for a second phase of the park with room for a six-building, 800,000-square-foot industrial campus, which will fuel continued growth in Hutto.
Titan’s leadership told the Austin Business Journal, “Hutto’s commitment to bringing this project online really demonstrates their level of commitment to job growth and positive economic impact for the city. We continue to see impressive industrial growth in Hutto.”
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