Centra Point deal set

Washington Capital Management, a Seattle-based pension fund adviser, bought the final two buildings at Centra Point office park in the southwestern Las Vegas Valley for $29 million, a Colliers International executive said Monday.

The December transaction completes Washington Capital's $126.4 million acquisition of all eight buildings at Centra Point, a business park developed by Centra Properties at the Beltway and Durango Drive. The first six buildings were bought in September.

The purchase price breaks down to about $325 a square foot, substantially higher than the market average of $225 a square foot.

"Investors recognize that there's a consistent demand for office space in Las Vegas due to the massive growth experienced in the last five years," said Tom Stilley, senior vice president of Colliers in Las Vegas.

Centra Point was 98.6 percent leased at the time of the deal. Tenants include State Farm Insurance, Stewart Title, Wells Fargo Home Mortgage and Pulte Homes. The 26-acre office park is in the growing southwest, about 10 miles from the Strip and McCarran International Airport.

Centra Properties principal Jim Stuart said he and partner Ken Sullivan have pulled back on development because there's an "imbalance" in the marketplace with regard to building costs, rental rates and lease demand.

"That doesn't motivate us. We're not going to develop just to make payroll," Stuart said. "Kenny and I are basically waiting on the sidelines for enough information to get us back in the market. We've had a string of good fortune and we know one bad deal can take down 10 good ones. There's no urgency to take risks we don't have to."

Centra, in a joint venture with Panattoni Development, built the Craig Distribution Center in North Las Vegas and Centra Point office park.

The company's largest endeavor is the $750 million, 1.5 million-square-foot Town Square Las Vegas shopping mall that opened in November on the south Strip. Stuart bought 57 acres from The Howard Hughes Corp. and assembled a total of 117 acres for the project, bringing in Florida-based Turnberry Associates as retail developer.

Contact reporter Hubble Smith at hsmith@reviewjournal.com or (702) 383-0491.