$50M Plus Bags 284,198-SF Duke Bridges I, II

TX-GE Business Properties has outmaneuvered a pack of two dozen would-be buyers for Duke Bridges I and II, a 284,198-sf block of class A space in Duke Realty Corp.'s 70-acre office park in far north Dallas. The lion's share of the space is leased to T-Mobile USA Inc.

"We had a tremendous amount of activity on the buildings," says Jack Crews, senior vice president and principal for Dallas-based Trammell Crow Co. "We had great bids that exceeded the expectations of the seller and met the market head on in that we brought in so many offers." True to Texas tradition, Crews isn't discussing the price nor is his partner on the deal, TCC senior vice president John Alvarado.

If the street's right, Duke Bridges I at 7668 Warren Parkway and Duke Bridges II at 7624 Warren Parkway reeled in north of $50 million, with construction quality, location and tenancy significantly boosting the price. The Bellevue, WA-based T-Mobile is holding leases for 245,239 sf in the two buildings, with 12 years left to go on the term.

The buying field "was mostly institutional all the way," Crews says of the 30-day marketing. "We had good quality buyers from all around the country as well as foreign buyers." He says the listing caught the attention of the foreign market because T-Mobile's parent is Deutsche Telecom. T-Mobile headquarters its customer service and network operation divisions in the buildings, situated at the Warren Parkway exit of the Dallas North Tollway. "The location speaks for itself," Crews stresses.

The winner is a relatively new division of Stamford, CT-based GE Capital that focuses on single-tenant assets. "They were clearly the best buyer for the deal," Crews says, acknowledging that GE Business also had the highest offer on the table. Andrew Vineyard was GE's point man for the deal.

The 158,949-sf Duke Bridges I has a 10,000-sf opening and the 27,500-sf balance is held by DebtXS, which inked a 10-year lease in 2005 to jumpstart the Indianapolis-based Duke's office park. T-Mobile leases the entire 125,900-sf Duke Bridges II.

The sale pulled 22.59 acres from Duke's land bank in Frisco Bridges. The park can support up to eight buildings. A third building--158,949 sf of spec space--is under construction at 7460 Warren Parkway. Delivery is set for April.