HOUSTON-Signs are that it's going to be a hardy year for the city's industrial market, particularly in the northwest corridor. A 300,000-sf bulk warehouse distribution center is just one of several projects that's clearly a trickle-down effect from a new air cargo facility.

HOUSTON-Dirt has been flying for 10 months, now it's time to open the doors on The Woodlands' Sterling Ridge Village Center. The 130,000-sf retail center boasts a 97% occupancy as the community makes plans for the official ribbon cutting.

HOUSTON-Through the generosity of the real estate community and a $2.2-million fundraising, Sugar Land now has a 17,000-sf women's shelter. Nearly a dozen of professional builders and suppliers have kicked in services and materials for the project, which has just wrapped up.

HOUSTON-Bank United has signed the last merger paper that puts more than 200 retail branches and 225 ATM machines into Washington Mutual Inc.'s portfolio. The buyer couldn't be happier since it falls at a period when Texas leads the nation in economic growth indicators.

HOUSTON-El Presidente Vincente Fox has a team player in Houston-based Hines, which is undertaking its second industrial park in Guadalajara, Mexico. This project will bring 1.3 million sf to the market, with the first 430,000 sf set to deliver in June.

HOUSTON-A strategy to find a high-tech tenant for Houston Community College has paid off for the leasing team. The 531,000-sf structure has just what Pros Revenue Management had been seeking and then some, says the president.

HOUSTON-Dallas-based McCarthy Construction has landed another Port of Houston project. The $9.6-million undertaking focuses on upgrades for the Barbours Cut terminal in Morgan's Point.

CLEAR LAKE, TX-Developer A. Brent Coon Interest has found a sweetheart of a location for a medical office project. The developer will be closing on a two-acre tract in Clear Lake, just across the street from a regional hospital.