DALLAS-The region's intellectual and financial investments are starting to pay off as West Coast consultants for bio, nano and pharma companies eye the southern sector for upcoming projects. No deal has landed, but South Dallas definitely is in the race.

HOUSTON-A local investor uses the 45,537-sf One Cornerstone Atrium on the north side of town as collateral for a 10-year loan with a sub-6% fixed-rate interest. The financing crosses the closing table with a 65% loan-to-value ratio.

DALLAS-Jonathan Bailey Associates, a leading international healthcare architect, signs a 10-year lease for 17,680 sf in the former Federal Reserve Building at 400 S. Akard St. The firm will open doors in December on retrofitted 1920's-era space.

DALLAS-Hopkins Commercial Real Estate swoops in for the close, paying the full ask of $485,000 to get a contract on a hard corner in an area primed for redevelopment. The 57,020-sf nightclub is secondary; the value is the land, says a broker.

HOUSTON-The local investor pays close to the $1.2-million ask for Yorkline Plaza, with below-market rents and above-average occupancy in a strong retail corridor. The new owner picks up the deal after one contract falls out.

DALLAS-Owner BF Avery & Sons Ltd. gets $6.2 million from Bank of America to retire acquisition and rehab debt for the 62,166-sf Awalt Building in the historic West End. The renovated asset, once a haven for vagrants, is 91% leased to top office and retail users.

HOUSTON-Direct Tech Southwest crafts a short-term lease to get an extra 3,000 sf of elbow room at 16770 Hedgecroft Dr. until negotiations are sealed for a 25,000-sf location and the fourth-quarter move is complete. The plan is to stay in the Greenspoint area.

DALLAS-Johnson Industries, affected by a direct parts shipment to dealerships, slides into 18,510 sf or half the space of its previous location to accommodate the change. The distributor get a three-year lease; the owner, a 100% occupancy.