GlobeSt.com - December 5, 2005

Glacier Commercial Expands Into Tarrant County

By Connie Gore

FORT WORTH-Glacier Commercial Realty LP will head into the New Year with a Tarrant County office, most likely tapping class A space in Chase Bank, one of two buildings in a portfolio assignment that's just been awarded by a Dallas-based investment group.

Andrew Beckman and Steve Shrum, co-managing partners of Glacier Commercial in Dallas, hired LeAnn Brown as senior vice president to lead the Tarrant County office. Brown, with 12 years' experience, previously was with the former NAI Stoneleigh Huff Brous McDowell firm in Fort Worth. Also hired was Brett Campbell, who will focus on the Arlington submarket.

Beckman tells GlobeSt.com that the team's size has yet to be determined, but the going-forward plan definitely calls for additional hires to support the steadily growing Tarrant County business, of which nearly 70% of Glacier's deals last year were west of Dallas. The 2.5-year-old Glacier Commercial Realty has seven brokers in its Dallas office at 8585 Stemmons Freeway.

Recently, Glacier brokers put State Farm into 28,000 sf of flex space at 121 Airport Center in Hurst. In recent weeks, Rainier Capital Management put Glacier in charge of leasing and managing the 115,905-sf Chase Bank at 860 W. Airport Freeway and 84,699-sf Bank of Texas building at 500 Grapevine Highway, both in Hurst. Beckman says Glacier's new office will end up in available class A space in the two-building portfolio, which is 65% to 70% leased.

Also recently, Beckman and Shrum assembled an investment group to buy the 10-screen UA theater at 2000 Forum Parkway in Bedford. The theater, which closed two months ago, will be redeveloped into office or retail use, according to Beckman. And, he says, Glacier's team is looking for additional acquisitions, predominately office and retail.