Seller McKallip Interests Ltd. developed the site for the Ford dealership, Coy Davidson, vice president with the Houston office of Colliers International tells GlobeSt.com. With the dealer's lease set to expire in June 2004, McKallip hired Davidson and Robert S. Parsley, CEO and principal of Colliers International's Houston office, to market the property because Bay Area Ford had plans to develop a nearby tract and relocate.

The property, listed at $3 million, was on the market about six months. Davidson says several retailers looked at the site for potential development, but only one serious offer surfaced--a buyer with plans to use it "as-is" for an automotive-related business. The 54,000-sf showroom includes offices and a service center. Davidson says Bay Area Ford didn't have a first right of refusal, but reconsidered its future plans and bought the site for "close" to the sticker price.

The holding, with frontage on Bay Area Boulevard, is located in a high-profile area, 23 miles southeast of the Houston CBD. Its immediate neighbor is a 170,000-sf office building, which is leased to Lockheed Martin, while a Chevrolet competitor is located nearby. The Harris County Appraisal District assesses the property at close to $1.9 million. Davidson and Parsley were the only brokers involved in the deal.