Scot Ison, Axis' president, tells GlobeSt.com that he was competing against two other firms for the Woodlands contract. The class A office component, carrying a $23 per sf quoted rate, is part of the 190,000-sf expansion, which is due to deliver in the spring. Ison says he fully expects office leases will be in hand before the opening.

The mall expansion will connect the property to the Woodlands waterway and town center, also under construction. "The Woodlands is one the most active office markets in the Houston area," Ison said in a press release. "The mall's central location and its amenities will attract office users from the Woodlands as well as the surrounding area." He says the firm's experience in office leasing in the Woodlands and track record with customers helped win the nod from the Chicago-headquartered mall owner.

The Post Oak Lane assignment has just 4,500 sf to fill in the 95,221-sf building, filled mostly with small to mid-size entrepreneurial companies. Hank Barber, with the HR Barber & Co. in Houston, and Ison struck up a business relationship during several office tours that led to the assignment change. Barber will continue to manage the property for owner, Rauyn Corp. The building's rent is quoted at $18.50 per sf.