DEAL OF THE WEEK
Norfolk Tower to receive upgrades and a new name, Nitya Tower
Nitya Capital has plans for its first office project, the 35-year-old Norfolk Tower that it plans to spruce up and rename.
Houston-based Nitya, which invests primarily in apartment properties, has purchased the 11-story office building at 2211 Norfolk at Greenbriar from Boston-based TA Realty. HFF handled the sale.
The building, which is leased to 65 to 70 small tenants, will be upgraded and rebranded as Nitya Tower. The location near Greenway Plaza, River Oaks, the Texas Medical Center and downtown was a draw.
“We saw a similar valueadd play that we look for in apartments,” founder and CEO Swapnil Agarwal said. “It’s a great location with visibility from U.S. 59. It’s an old building and it needs work, which is what we do.”
The 207,562-squarefoot building is 82 percent leased, and Agarwal aims to push it to 92 percent within two years through renewals and new leases. The company’s Karya Property Management affiliate will manage the building.
Over the next 12 to 18 months, the building will be modernized by adding either panels or stucco over the red brick exterior and painting it white, Agarwal said. New fitness and conference facilities are planned along with upgrades to the lobby, elevators, and common area restrooms. The tower was built in 1982.
H. Dan Miller, Martin Hogan and Wesley Hightower of HFF represented TA Realty in the sale. HFF’s Susan Hill and Kelly Layne arranged floatingrate acquisition financing on behalf of Nitya Capital.
TA Realty has sold other local properties recently, including the Two Sugar Creek office building in Sugar Land to Dallas-based Velosis, and a three-building warehouse portfolio to Dallas-based ATCAP Partners.
Nitya Capital owns and operates more than 10,000 apartment units and has about $800 million of assets under management.