CATERPILLAR CRAWLS TO SCHERTZ (San Antonio Business Journal) – Caterpillar Inc. plans to build a 260,000-sf manufacturing facility in the Tri-County Business Park to supply components to its assembly plant in Seguin.

The facility will be home to the Peoria, Ill.-based company’s engine head machining operations. Production could begin in the facility in late 2011 if construction begins by the end of this year. Once completed, Royal Oak Industries will manage day-to-day functions in the facility.

The Schertz city council approved a 75 percent tax abatement on the property for the next eight years along with additional incentives if the company completes other expansions.

Sixty will work at the plant at the northwest corner of Doerr Ln. and Lookout Rd.

NATURE BLOOMS IN FLOWER MOUND

FLOWER MOUND (Dallas Morning News) – Nature’s Best may lease a 264,000-sf building at the Lakeside Trade Center to house its new regional distribution center.

This will be the first time the supplier of organic and natural products has opened a full-service distribution center outside of California.

The company received a five-year, 50 percent tax abatement on business personal property, excluding inventory, by the Flower Mound town council.

“This is one of the largest projects to locate in Flower Mound,” said Melissa Glasgow, Flower Mound’s director of economic development. “It provides a substantial new tax base and a number of new jobs.”

The center will add an estimated $630,000 to business personal property tax revenue over 20 years, Glasgow said.

FORECLOSURE MORATORIUM: GAINES' TAKE

COLLEGE STATION (Real Estate Center) – How did the foreclosure moratorium begin and what ramifications could it have on homeowners and investors in Texas and nationally?

Research Economist Dr. Jim Gaines answers these questions on this week's Real Estate Red Zone podcast.

Also, Bryan Pope and Edie Craig share the latest real estate news from Weslaco, San Benito, McKinney and Texas' major metros.

You can listen to the free podcast from your computer by going to recenter.tamu.edu/podcastand clicking the “play” button beneath each episode. To subscribe, click on the RSS feed found on the podcast page. You can also subscribe through iTunes and download each episode to your iPod.

While you're there, don't forget to tell us what you think by completing our podcast survey.

So kick back, relax and and join us in the Red Zone. We'll save a seat for you.

ARROWROCK'S WESTOVER BULL'S-EYE

FORT WORTH (REBusinessOnline) – ArrowRock Westover Village LP has acquired the 114,000-sf Westover Village from Amegy Bank of Texas in an all-cash transaction.

The property at the southeast corner of SH 183 and Green Oaks Rd. has multiple national tenants such as Petco, Party City, Half Price Books, JPMorgan Chase, Arby’s and McDonald’s.

ArrowRock, an investment fund owned and managed by St. Louis-based Summit Realty Ventures, has asked UCR ChainLinks Retail Advisors to handle marketing and leasing.

Read King represented the buyer while Holliday Fenoglio Fowler represented the seller.

WHO YOU GONNA CALL?

COLLEGE STATION (Real Estate Center) – Here at the Real Estate Center, we ain't 'fraid of no ghosts. Scary real estate stories, however, are another matter.

With Halloween just over a week away, plans are in the works for our most ghoulish Red Zone podcast yet. And we'd like your help.

If you've worked in real estate long enough, you likely have a whopper of a "horror story" that our listeners would enjoy hearing. Perhaps it’s the most hilariously awful property you've ever shown (or had someone show you). Or maybe you lived through the home repair project from hell. Or have had a run-in with the paranormal during a showing. It could be anything.

All we ask is that your story in some way be connected to real estate and that no guilty parties (living or dead) be named.

E-mail your story to bpope@mays.tamu.edu and we might share it on next week's Real Estate Red Zone. Be sure to include your name and city.

WESTWOOD TAKES ATASCOCITA CENTER

HUMBLE (GlobeSt.com) – Westwood Financial Corp. has increased its shopping center portfolio with the purchase of the Kroger-anchored Atascocita Center.

The 97,240-sf property was purchased from Regency Centers Corp. at an 8 percent cap rate. The seven-year-old center is 88 percent leased and is at the intersection of Will Clayton Pkwy. and Atascocita Rd.

Atascocita Center is the Los Angeles-based investor’s second grocery-anchored purchase in Texas this year. The company acquired Memorial Collection, a 103,330-sf shopping center anchored by Randall’s grocery store, in April.

Regency Centers was represented by Grubb & Ellis Co.’s investment sales group in Houston.

BOXER TAKES DOWN TENTH

SUGAR LAND (Boxer Property) – Boxer Property has purchased 12808 West Airport in the Sugar Land Business Park.

The three-story, 150,578-sf building was constructed in 1984 and is currently 50 percent occupied. The first story has tech/flex space, and atrium office space is provided on the second and third floors.

This marks Boxer Property's tenth purchase of the year. The company now owns 12 million sf of commercial real estate throughout the country.

The seller, KBS Realty, was represented by Grubb & Ellis.

WHOLE FOODS RECOGNIZED AS GREEN POWER LEADER

AUSTIN (U.S. EPA) – Whole Foods Market has been recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as a Green Power Partner of the Year.

The Austin-based company was acknowledged for its achievement in using green power, helping grow the nation’s voluntary green power market and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Whole Foods Market was one of only four organizations nationwide to be chosen as a Green Power Partner of the Year.

The company currently purchases nearly 818 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of green power annually, which is 100 percent of the company’s purchased electricity use. This is equivalent to reducing the carbon dioxide emissions of more than 112,000 passenger vehicles per year and is the equivalent amount of electricity needed to power more than 71,000 average American homes annually.

Green power is electricity generated from renewable resources such as solar, wind, geothermal, bio-gas, and low-impact hydro. Green power produces no net increase of greenhouse gas emissions.

SEPTEMBER HOME SALES DOWN

TEXAS (Real Estate Center) – Existing home sales in September were down from last year, according to newly released data from Texas Multiple Listing Services (MLS).

About 15,200 homes were sold in September, down 18 percent from September 2009. Meanwhile, the median price remained virtually the same at $147,700. There was a 7.9-month inventory of existing homes on the market.

Here are data for a few Texas cities (current as of Oct. 21, 2010). More data on these and other cities are available on our website.

HUNT NURSES THE FUTURE

EL PASO (Dallas Morning News) – Texans may soon be relieved of the strain from statewide and nationwide nursing shortages.

The Hunt Family Foundation has donated $10 million for a new nursing school on the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center campus in El Paso. The Gayle Greve Hunt School of Nursing is to be named after the wife of Woody Hunt.

Woody Hunt is chairman of the Hunt Family Foundation and CEO of Hunt Companies Inc., a real estate investment and development company based in El Paso.

The Texas Department of State Health Services’ data show that Texas will be short 71,000 nurses by 2020. The new nursing school hopes to reach an enrollment of 500 by 2015 to alleviate the problem. Current enrollment is 40.