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Last updated: October 2, 2008  5:45 pm

Gaedeke Plans Major Redo of One McKinney Plaza

By Connie Gore

Preliminary Rendering

DALLAS-The Gaedeke Group is planning a major overhaul of the 256,543-sf One McKinney Plaza, where four new deals have taken all but 965 sf of the class A's remaining space. The estimated $6-million to $7-million retooling, which is still awaiting the owner's final nod, is slated to start in February.

BOKA Powell LLC in Dallas will be presenting its latest set of plans to the owner in two weeks, according to Belinda Dabliz, vice president of leasing for locally based Gaedeke Group. Built in the mid-1980s at 3232 McKinney Ave., the 15-story building is a marquee footprint in Uptown at the southeast corner of the tony avenue's intersection with Hall Street. And for the first time in its history, Dabliz says there will be retail space on the first floor with windows on McKinney Avenue. Although the size of the retail space has yet to be determined, the Weitzman Group in Dallas is on the prowl for restaurants and other complementary shops for the asset.

If all goes as planned, Dabliz says One McKinney Plaza will have valet parking for the first time, with other changes bringing a new skin and updated lighting. The owner has yet to pick the replacement for the building's travertine skin, but that too is on the near-term agenda.

Existing Entrance

In a three-week turn, Dabliz has filled 43,375 sf in a quartet of deals for the building's prestigious directory. Long-time tenant Cityplace Co., with a 5,931-sf lease about to expire, has bumped its total to 9,575 sf on the eighth floor and signed for another five years. Jeff Staubach, vice president of Jones Lang LaSalle, is Cityplace's tenant rep.

Also, Kendall Law Group LLP bumped its One McKinney Plaza lease to 6,000 sf, signing a three-year lease for the office. The tenant rep was William McClung, C&W's executive vice president.

Dabliz' big win is a full-floor tenant for the 22,300-sf penthouse. The inbound tenant is a computer software company armed with a five-year lease, but its name is under lock and key due to a gag rule in the contract. The tenant was represented by Cushman & Wakefield of Texas Inc. executive director Greg Biggs and Craig Wilson.

In an 88-month pact, MWW Group Inc. has leased 5,500 sf. James Lob, senior vice president for UGL Equis Corp., bargained the terms for the tenant, who will be moving from 1300 E. Lookout Dr. in Richardson.

The leasing flurry has left Dabliz with just 965 sf to fill on the 12th floor. The space is being marketed for $25 per sf--a sticker price that's going to move closer to Uptown's more common $30 per sf after the renovation.

Meanwhile, Dabliz says she's already working a deal for her next opening: 1,800 sf available in April. Excluding any renewals, the building's occupancy is bed down until Jan. 1, 2010 when a 22,000-sf floor opens up. As a testament to the asset's appeal, Dabliz says she had two tenants jockeying for the penthouse floor, with the win going to the one who got all financials and other documents in the owner's hands first. The deal was inked in a 30-day spin.

"The McKinney Avenue address is a big draw," says Dabliz, who's beginning her 14th year with Gaedeke. "They really take care of their buildings and their assets and their tenants." Also on the drawing board is a smaller-scale renovation of Gaedeke's nearby Corporate Office, Regency Plaza, at 3710 Rawlins St.

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