HOUSTON-Texas Medical Center is paying about $15 million for the old 627,000-sf Nabisco bakery to be redeveloped into office and laboratory space. The 51-year-old plant's 21 acres is one of the few large parcels to hit the Houston market.

AUSTIN-A 16-year-old broker dealer, Choice Investments Inc., will merge with

DALLAS-Centex Corp., a leading home builder nationwide, is finding a stronger

FT. WORTH-A $30-million manufacturing facility for Valeo, an internationally leading automotive supplier based in France, will unveil its first "from the ground up" electronics manufacturing facility in the US at a ribbon-cutting ceremony Thursday. The 65,000-sf plant will start with a core crew of 40 to 50 and eventually employ 170.

HOUSTON-An investment group led by Vista Equities Group has purchased a

HOUSTON-A mixed-use project gets under way on 1.3 acres situated west of downtown. The 40,000-sf development is being undertaken by Beeson Properties.

HOUSTON-BMC Software starts 800,000-sf office complex, keeping eyes to the future for even more development. The company's new campus will be situated on 50 acres adjacent to BriarLake Plaza.

AUSTIN-Despite plans for several million sf of new space, the city's industrial market remains tight, with a lack of space for tenants hungry for expansion, say experts in the sector. Austin has absorbed nearly 1 million sf in the first six months of this year, with nearly half located in the northern corridor where a 1% vacancy rate prevails.