385,619-SF Princeton's New Owner Kicks Off Lease-Up Campaign

The Parsippany, NJ-based Prudential Real Estate Investors, the Princeton's owner since 1987, isn't talking about the sale nor is the buyer, Princeton Partners LLC, a group of local investors who sources say spent more than the rumored $42 per sf to take over one of Dallas' more talked-about opportunistic plays of 2004. The Princeton's location at 14651 Dallas Parkway, a 6.9-acre park-like setting in Addison just seconds from the toll road, and its vacancy, which was nearly 60% during the nine months of marketing, undoubtedly baited a broad range of offers for an asset with a 1,001-space parking garage and an assessment nudging $18.7 million by the Dallas Central Appraisal District.

The BeerWells affiliate reportedly stepped in and made the close in a relatively short timeframe, using its usual acquisition MO that teamed capital from an internal stable of investors with bank financing. Holliday Fenoglio Fowler LP's Dallas team of managing directors Barry Brown and James Batjer, senior managing director Jeff Stone and senior analyst Todd Savage brokered the transaction along with PREI's dispositions vice president Jim Street.

As the sale neared the closing table, PMRealty Group's Dallas office slid in a 60,000-sf tenant for the sixth floor and part of the fifth to take the 40.1% occupancy to 57%. Until two years ago, the Princeton's occupancy stayed in the low 90% range. The occupancy blow was leveled by the exits of the Montreal-based Bombardier Corp.'s regional office and Motel 6 headquarters team.

BeerWells' leasing director Tom Dyer is working on a plan to quickly fill the building. He is courting tenants with a starting quote of $18 per sf. "We are aware of market conditions," he tells GlobeSt.com, adding other details for the campaign are still under discussion. "We've got some good ideas."

Dyer says the expectation is occupancy will be 95% before the year ends. "We're hopeful we can have an explosion in the occupancy in the next three months. We think it's a great location," he says. "Prudential kept their property up so well that it's not like any renovations are required." Besides easy freeway access, the building's amenities include a deli, covered parking, outdoor courtyard and shared conference and break rooms. The Princeton's strong appeal is larger than usual floor plates, 51,359 sf on a half dozen levels.

Dyer says the Princeton, now BeerWells' largest asset in a four-million-sf portfolio of office, industrial and retail space, has little lease turnover this year with its 27-tenant roster. Excluding the new deal, the lead tenants are Hibernia National Bank of New Orleans and Citibank West of Tampa, FL.