DALLAS-Second quarter leasing activity had offered a glimmer of hope that the worst had passed, but another slump is hanging over the Dallas region, says a Cushman & Wakefield of Texas senior director. It's not marketwide and it's not all gloom and doom.

CLARKSVILLE, TX-A Houston-based foundation is auctioning off some 4,000 acres of farm and ranch land in a strategy to deploy proceeds into its philanthropic activities. Earlier this week, about 500 Grand Prairie acres had been on an auction block.

FT. WORTH-Crescent REIT and its three-year-old operating company are parting ways in a $78.4-million deal made possible by the REIT Modernization Act. It's a win-win for all, says Crescent's VP of investor relations.

FARMERS BRANCH, TX-Lasting Products and Texas Wholesale Building Materials made a perfect match in a recent deal for a 267,000-sf industrial site. The seller leases back 40,000 sf and the wholesaler adds about 90,000 sf plus stays in the same submarket.

DALLAS-A long-time friendship and desire for a national presence puts Dallas-based Askew/Reese Investment Co. into the fold of Minneapolis-based NorthMarq Capital. Changes are afoot in the firms' Dallas, Austin and Houston offices.

EULESS, TX-By week's end, Fairfield Residential will own or hold an option for the balance of the multifamily developable land in the 700-acre Villages of Bear Creek. Another signing is coming, GlobeSt.com has been told.

DALLAS-The Oakland, CA-based Kaiser Foundation Hospitals has sold about 13 acres in the Mid Cities area, abandoning all plans for a medical facility on the site. The buyer, Abres Ltd., is planning a multi-tenant retail development.

ARLINGTON, TX-Metro Custom Plastics Inc. is moving just a couple of blocks away in the Great Southwest Industrial Park, but it signals a significant expansion for the manufacturer. The company has inked a five-year, four-month deal to double its space.