Byword for 1994 is 'sold.' (Arkansas real estate industry) (Industry Overview)

Million-Dollar Real Estate Deals Abound Across Pulaski County Market

The Real Estate action in Pulaski County was fast and furious during 1994. Individual deals in most every sector of the market topped the $1 million mark, according to sales captured in the "Real Deals" column.

The largest retail sale of the year involved McCain Plaza, a 294,000-SF retail center in North Little Rock (April 11). Developers Diversified Finance Corp. of Moreland Hills, Ohio, paid $18 million for the project.

The biggest land deal was also in North Little Rock and encompassed 157 acres at the northeast corner of Interstate 40 and U.S. Highway 67-167 (March 21). Baptist Medical System bought the land for $8.7 million, with the intention of developing a new medical complex.

The most expensive land sales of the year closed in west Little Rock along the Chenal Parkway corridor.

Taco Bell Corp. paid a whopping $14 per SF for a 35,145-SF site at the southwest corner of Chenal Parkway and Bowman Road. For those crunching numbers at home, the $497,000 purchase price would buy more than 598,000 taco supremes.

Following a close second was a 1.75-acre site at Chenal Parkway and Markham Street that closed at $13 per SF. CDW Investment, an affiliate of Coulson Oil Co., paid $992,000 for the land and plans to develop a super convenience store project.

The land was part of a 9.13-acre tract that J.D. Ashley's Conservative Development Co. purchased for $2.59 million. Retail space is planned for the remaining land.

This Conservative Development property was one of three million-dollar sales of land owned by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Little Rock. The diocese has held the acreage at Chenal and Markham for 60 years.

Bob Fewell paid the diocese $1.14 million for a 3.31-acre site destined to become the new home of the Dick Layton Buick-GMC dealership.

The American Taekwondo Association bought a 3.5-acre site from the diocese for $1.09 million. The Little Rock-based group intends to develop a 45,000-SF building that will serve as a new headquarters and taekwondo museum.

Best Buy Co. shelled out $2.6 million for 7.7 acres at the northeast corner of Bowman Road and Chenal Parkway (June 6). The retailing chain developed half the property and has the balance in layaway.

Metropolitan Trust Co. bought a 5.7-acre retail site for $1 million near the southeast corner of North Hills Boulevard and Crestwood Road in North Little Rock (March 7).

The Bailey family of Little Rock went on a buying spree of properties that totaled more than $9.6 million during 1994. The list included:

* $3 million for Market Street Plaza, a 136,618-SF shopping center at 1525 Merrill Drive (Jan. 17).

* $2.77 million for Rock Creek Square, a 46,000-SF retail center at the southwest corner of Bowman Road and Markham Street (Oct. 31).

* $2.6 million for Pavilion in the Park, a 62,851-SF office/retail center at 8201 Cantrell Road (Oct. 24).

* $1.36 million for Summer Chase Apartments, an 80-unit complex at 420 Markham Mesa Place (Aug. 1).

Offices, Windfalls and Apartments

The Arkansas Public Employees Retirement System acquired the 21-story Union National Bank Building and adjoining parking deck for $11.65 million. (Aug. 22).

FC Paramount Inc., led by Ed Willis and Robert Shults, purchased the 33,000-SF Paramount Life Building at 11025 Anderson Drive for more than $3.3 million. (Aug. 29).

The city of Sherwood bought the 40-acre Woody's Sherwood Forest development at 111 W. Maryland Ave. for $1.4 million (May 23). Jess Woods invested most of the proceeds in a west Little Rock office building at 501 Hardin Road that is home to the U.S. Geological Survey. Woods paid almost $2.3 million for the 19,360-SF building (Oct. 10).

Danco Construction Co. of North Little Rock acquired the Old World North Building, a 22,500-SF office building at 4700 W. Commercial Drive in North Little Rock for $1.35 million (Aug. 8).

Ozark National Life Insurance Co. of Little Rock paid $1.06 million for the Broadway River Center, a 25,000-SF office building at 628 W. Broadway in North Little Rock (Feb. 14).

Alltel Corp. of Little Rock paid $4.36 million for two undeveloped tracts covering more than 31.4 acres adjacent to its twin-tower corporate headquarters.

This acquisition pushed the company's Riverdale investment in land alone to $8.4 million during the past 14 years.

Leisure Arts purchased 7.32 acres to expand its west Little Rock corporate complex on state Highway 10 for $1.2 million (Feb. 14).

The 153,000-SF Outlet Mall at 13000 Interstate 30 sold for $1.4 million (May 16). Reaping the windfall were Joe Edd Hawkins and Sam Winstead, who bought the mall in October 1991 for $525,000 from the Resolution Trust Corp.

Otter Creek developer Tommy Hodges returned from exile in Texas to lead a group of investors in buying 210 undeveloped acres at the southwest Little Rock project (Nov. 14).

The Hodges-led group bought out the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s 50 percent stake in the land for $1.2 million. Hodges was originally in a 50/50 partnership with First Southern Services Corp., the real estate arm of the now-defunct FirstSouth Savings & Loan of Pine Bluff.

Residential Rumblings

On the residential front, land and homes occasionally tipped the scales at $1 million-plus.

Winrock Development Co., the largest residential developer in Pulaski County, acquired more than 151 acres in west Little Rock (June 13). Winrock paid Melvyn Bell $1.9 million for the land, which will be used for expansion during the next five to six years.

Two presidents of Little Rock companies were on either side of a $1.67 million deal, touted as the largest home sale of the year (Oct. 31). Layton "Scooter" Stuart, president and chief executive officer of One National Bank, purchased a 9,272-SF mansion in west Little Rock's Hickory Hills from Don Kirkpatrick, president of Quality Foods.

Two publicly traded real estate investment trusts visited west Little Rock, and each bought a pair of apartment projects.

Mid-America Communities Inc. of Memphis, Tenn., acquired Calais Forest Apartments, a 260-unit complex at 500 Napa Valley Drive, for $10.15 million (Nov. 21).

The company earlier bought Heritage House Apartments, a 202-unit complex at 1812 Reservoir Road, for $5 million (May 23).

Southwestern Property Trust of Dallas purchased Shadow Lake Apartments, a 296-unit complex at 13111 W. Markham St., for $9.5 million (April 25).

The Texas REIT paid $8 million for Turtle Creek Apartments, a 216-unit complex at 601 Napa Valley Drive (June 27).

A trio of other notable apartment sales involving different players were:

* Holcombe Heights Apartments, a 125-unit complex at 2100 Rebsamen Park Road, $2.66 million (Sept. 19).

* Willow Creek Apartments, a 133-unit complex at 7515 Geyer Springs Road, $1.7 million (April 18).

* Rosewood Apartments, a 100-unit complex at 6600 Lancaster Road, $1.2 million (April 25).

And, finally, here is a quarter of deals involving projects where the bed count is always an important line item:

* $3.06 million for the Little Rock Nursing Center at 1516 Cumberland St., a 190-bed facility (Sept. 26).

* $3.5 million for the Hampton Inn at 6100 Mitchell Drive in Little Rock, a 122-room hotel (March 28).

* $2.7 million for the Super 8 Motel at 7501 Interstate 30 in Little Rock, a 95-room motel (May 9).

* $1.56 million for the Jacksonville Ramada Inn at 200 U.S. Highway 67 North, a 97-room hotel (June 27).