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HOUSTON-The Decorative Center Houston, marking its 30th anniversary, has added six tenants, picked up expansions from three others and kept a longtime furniture retailer in place as momentum builds for Spring Market. The tenants, filling a total of 59,600 sf, predominately have signed five-year pacts.
The 508,863-sf center, with 350,000 sf of trade-only showrooms and 150,000 sf of class A office space, is now 75% occupied. Two years ago, the 5120 Woodway Dr. building was 60% occupied to a variety of tenants, some of which were not a good fit for the center. "We're looking for a certain type of tenant--the creme de la creme of showrooms," says Connie Dando, director of leasing for the decorative center. "We want to be the Neiman Marcus for the design industry--one-stop shopping."
Dando tells GlobeSt.com that many showroom tenants choose Dallas over Houston because they are unaware of the demand that exists in the city. When she became leasing director two years ago, she immediately began courting national showroom tenants that didn't have a presence in Houston. The decorative center's office space is quoted at $16.50 per sf. The marketed rate for showroom space ranges from $20 per sf to $25 per sf.
Just recently, several national showroom tenants have leased space. Janus et Cie, a supplier of high-end indoor and outdoor furniture, leased a 4,500-sf, glass-front showroom next to Cafe Extraordinaire on the gallery level. Other newcomers are Charles Ray & Associates, a custom upholstery firm that took 5,000 sf; Richter Black Label Collection, a contemporary furniture designer leasing 3,500 sf; and California Closets, which set up a second Houston location in 1,500 sf.
A quartet of existing tenants renewed and expanded. Stark Carpets signed a five-year lease to expand from 5,000 sf to 15,000 sf. The company has been in the center more than 15 years, according to Dando. J&J Roman went from 1,500 sf to 3,500 sf while Design Directions of Houston added 4,000 sf to get a total of 10,000 sf by backfilling some space created by J&J Roman's shuffle. Longtime tenant David Sutherland, a specialty furniture maker, renewed an 8,500-sf showroom.
Office newcomers are EC Power, which took 6,000 sf, and a local interior design firm leased 2,100 sf. Both are five-year leases.
"The new tenants will significantly enhance our Spring Market event, which is scheduled for May 10," Dando says. The event attracts roughly 10,000 design professionals to peruse high-end furniture, upholstery, carpet and other home decor accessories.
According to Dando, the center's $5.5-million rehab gets the credit for attracting the half dozen of new tenants. "With the completion of the multimillion-dollar renovation, which upgraded both the interior and exterior of the building, we now meet the needs and aspirations of both our showroom and office tenants," she says.
The center is owned by New York City-based Cohen Bros. Realty Co. of Texas LP, which bought the property in 2001 from the Dallas-based partnership of Lucy Crow Billingsley and Crow Holdings. Cohen Bros. Realty also owns Pacific Design Center in Los Angeles and Decorative & Design Building in New York City.
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