Commercial Real Estate Council of Metro Little Rock (CREC MLR) held the seventh annual Commercial Real Estate Awards on Tuesday, Feb. 25, to recognize significant achievements and the largest real estate transactions in metro Little Rock made by local brokers in the previous year. Transactions are recognized in the categories chosen when the transaction was submitted. Sales are based on reported dollar amounts, and leases are based on reported square footage.
LEASES
- Largest Industrial Lease
- 1601 Gregory Street/Priority Wire & Cable – Ted Dickey, Lighthouse Asset Advisors
- Largest Medical Lease
- 100 Four Paws Lane/Fresenius USA Manufacturing – Drew Holbert & Clark Irwin, Colliers Arkansas and Randall K Moore, Terry Moore & Associates
- Largest Office Lease
- 5 Allied Dr/Lyon College – Kim Battle, Justin Bentley, Mark Bentley, Kevin Huchingson, Bill Pendergist & Isaac Smith, Colliers Arkansas
- Largest Retail Lease
- 1200 Breckenridge Drive/Film Alley – Hank Kelley & Daryl Peeples, Kelley Commercial Partners
SALES
- Largest Industrial Sale
- 400 Murphy Dr/ACE Hardware Regional Distribution Center – William Callahan, CBRE
- Largest Land Sale
- Chenal Parkway & Rahling Road – Tract 1, Lots 8 & 9B – Leonard Boen, Commercial Realty and Ryan Gibson, Rick O’Brien & Jason Parker, Cushman & Wakefield | Sage Partners
- Largest Multi-Family Housing Sale
- 11700 Pleasant Ridge Road-11810 Pleasant Ridge Road/Pleasant Ridge-Pleasant Ridge Pointe – Ted Bailey, III & Richard Cheek, The Multifamily Group
- Largest Office Sale
- 7773 Sloan/Lexicon – Hank Kelley, Nick Kelley & Gary Smith, Kelley Commercial Partners
- Largest Retail Sale
- 17711 Chenal Parkway/The Promenade at Chenal – William Callahan, CBRE
Commercial Real Estate Impact Award
The Impact Awards recognize the positive effects of innovative ventures, support, experiences or long-term projects that are key to the success of individuals or businesses who help make metro Little Rock a healthy commercial real estate market. CREC recognizes the design and construction of the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra Stella Boyle Smith Music Center’s contribution to the commercial real estate market and the performing arts community.
Arkansas Symphony Orchestra Stella Boyle Smith Music Center
In September 2024, after nearly 60 years of renting space, the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra opened what CEO Christina Littlejohn believes is the only facility that belongs entirely to the orchestra it serves.
The 20,000 square-foot, state-of-the-art building seeks to provide a radically welcoming hub of musical activity for all Arkansans, serving youth and adults of all ages. The building will provide access to music education, music performances and music making through new spaces and a broadcast and recording studio. The building is designed with two wings divided by a central lobby and lounge area. One side houses the administrative offices for the orchestra’s 15 staff members, four practice rooms and two classrooms for the orchestra’s educational arm, the E. Lee Ronnel Music Academy. This space allows orchestra members to give private and group lessons. The other side of the building features Morgan Hall with space for instrument storage (including the orchestra’s 9-foot Steinway piano), a mother’s/quiet room, a catering kitchen, and a fully operational recording studio. The center was designed by Witsell Evans Rasco Architects and built by Bailey Construction.
The center is a strong presence in the East Village at 1101 E 3rd Street, and in keeping with Arkansas’ rich tradition of music creators, the Stella Boyle Smith Music Center aims to inspire appreciation for all kinds of music, be an accessible resource for those learning the craft, and help cultivate the next generation of music creators.
Commercial Real Estate Project of the Year 2024
Breckenridge Village
10301 N Rodney Parham Road
Breckenridge Village is a landmark retail shopping center located at the intersection of I-430 & Rodney Parham that has been in existence since the early 80s. The property was purchased in May 2022 by a group of local investors with a plan to redevelop the center to a dining and entertainment destination. The local investment group includes several restauranteurs that have been instrumental in the recruitment of quality local restaurants. In March 2023, in the middle of the redevelopment project, a devastating tornado ripped through the center causing major damage and rendering the tenant spaces inhabitable. The repairs included new roofs, mechanical systems, exterior wall repairs and costs to repair several tenant spaces. The tornado delayed the project for one year, but several restaurants are now open for business and doing very well. The remaining spaces will be leased to service-oriented businesses or offices as well as a new theater venture which will feature Duckpin Bowling, 8 movie auditoriums and an arcade. Breckenridge Village was designated as the Breckenridge Village Entertainment District, a destination location for Little Rock.
- Owner/Developer KBK-Breck LLC
- Landlord’s Agent Hank Kelley, Daryl Peeples & Brooke Miller, Kelley Commercial Partners
- Architect RPPY Architects and Heiple+Wiedower Architects
- Contractor Haney Construction, Keet O’Gary Construction and Nail Construction
- Bank Relyance Bank and First Financial Bank
- Tenants Deluca’s Pizza, Root Cafe, Eat My Catfish, Flyway Brewery, Waldo’s Chicken and Beer, Neverwhere Coffee, Mt. Fuji Japanese Restaurant, Comics and Oddities, Scoops Homemade Ice Cream, Schulman Theatres Inc’s Film Alley
Legend Awards
People are called Legends for many reasons. They might be famous – or infamous – admired, have exceptional ability in a particular area, or held in high esteem for their actions. CREC honors people who fit all these characteristics and have made an outsized contribution to metro Little Rock’s commercial real estate community. Past Legends include Rick Ashley, Gus Vratsinas, Jim Hathaway, Jimmy Moses and Dickson Flake. John Flake and Timothy Grooms, men with have life-long family connections to real estate and who, in their individual ways have been important influences on metro Little Rock, even beyond the commercial real estate industry, were recognized with Legend Awards.
Sponsors for the event include:
- Gold- BluSky Restoration, Ferstl Valuation Services, Metro Disaster Specialists, Middleton Heat & Air
- Silver- C.B.M. Construction, Colliers Arkansas, Evo Business Environments, First Service Bank, PI Roofing, Pro Land Title, Regions Center 400 Capitol, Sage Partners
- Bronze- Arkansas Federal Credit Union, Certa Pro Painters, Comfort Systems of Arkansas, Hathaway Group, Pulaski County Title, Quattlebaum, Grooms & Tull PLLC, Western Specialty Contractors
- Event- Apartment Hunters, Haybar Real Estate, Jefferson County Alliance for Economic Development, MWC, The Multifamily Group
CREC board members include Matthew Beachboard, Moses Tucker Partners; Reagan Compton, GFF Design; Michael Crosby, Quattlebaum, Grooms & Tull PLLC; Melody DeLone, Canyon View Properties; Derek Fisher, Bank OZK; James Harkins, Blue Whale Development; David Hathaway, Hathaway Group; Rose Kline, Cushman & Wakefield | Sage Partners; Teresa Kreis, Colliers; Brad Sims, Pulaski County Title; and Payton Smith, Metro Disaster Specialists.
The Commercial Real Estate Council of Metro Little Rock’s mission is to promote and support all aspects of commercial real estate. The group works to facilitate engagement, education, and networking for groups, individuals, and companies representing development, brokerage, property management, finance, construction, law and other industries with an interest in commercial real estate in the metro Little Rock area.
For more information contact 501.291.2210 or info@crecmlr.org.
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