HOUSTON, Nov. 30, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Whitestone REITTM, (NYSE-Amex:WSR) ("Whitestone"), a fully integrated real estate company that owns, operates and re-develops Community Centered PropertiesTM, which are visibly located in established or developing culturally diverse neighborhoods, announced plans to transform Lion Square Center, an Asian Community Center located in Houston's International Management District. The announcement was made as J.S. Wang of Best Supermarket Corp. signed a lease and took possession of the space at the Center for a new retail concept that combines a cultural offering of domestic goods and groceries. The 42,205 square foot lease translates to a 1.4% increase in overall occupancy for Whitestone.
The lease will initiate Whitestone REIT's transformation of the property into an upscale, Asian-themed Community Center. The transformation plan includes new architectural and landscaping features to enhance the internationally-themed culture within the Lion Square Center.
Best Saving Supermarket at Lion Square is a sequel to Best Fresh Supermarket, an Asian grocery outlet introduced by entrepreneur J.S. Wang. "We are excited to be part of the Lion Square transformation project and provide a new shopping venue for our customers within the growing International Management District community," said Mr. Wang, President of Best Supermarket Corp.
"We are pleased to welcome J.S. Wang, a creative entrepreneur and established local business person, and his Best Saving Supermarket team to our tenant roster. Best Saving Supermarket will complement and build upon the synergies that already exist in Lion Square and the services offered to the surrounding local community. We expect the addition of Best Saving Supermarket and the overall transformation of the Center to increase traffic as customers are drawn to the new service offerings and attractive new features that we will add to the Center," said James C. Mastandrea, Whitestone's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "Our decision to transform Lion Square into an Asian-themed cultural Community Center location is consistent with our unique strategy of Creating Community Centered PropertiesTM to serve the needs of the community. The resulting transformed Community will add significant sales and real estate tax revenues for the International Management District and add value for our shareholders."
Dan Nixon, Senior Vice President of Leasing and Rafael Melara, Senior Leasing Agent, both of Whitestone REIT, represented Whitestone as landlord, while Kenneth Li represented the tenant.
About Lion Square
Lion Square, owned, managed and leased by Whitestone REIT, is located in the heart of the International Management District (also known as "Houston's new Chinatown") – a 12 square mile area that includes about 2,500 businesses and 100,000 residents. The Center currently consists of 119,621 square feet of gross leasable area and fronts Bellaire Boulevard at Wilcrest. The site is easily accessed, just minutes from Beltway 8 and the Westpark Tollway.
The Lion Square tenant mix exemplifies Whitestone's strategy of Creating Communities: the synergistic business mix of small businesses represent retail, medical, educational and family dining services—designed for cross-referrals within the community to drive traffic to the Center.
About Whitestone REIT
Whitestone REIT (NYSE-Amex:WSR) is a fully integrated real estate company that owns, operates and re-develops Community Centered PropertiesTM, which are visibly located properties in established or developing culturally diverse neighborhoods. Whitestone focuses on value-creation in its properties, as it markets, leases and manages its properties to match tenants with the shared needs of surrounding neighborhoods. Operations are structured for providing cost-effective service to locally-oriented smaller space tenants (<3,000 sq. ft.). Whitestone has a diversified tenant base concentrated on service offerings such as medical, education, and casual dining. The largest of its 770 tenants comprises less than 2.5% of its rental revenues. Headquartered in Houston, Texas and founded in 1998, the Company is internally managed with a portfolio of commercial properties in Texas, Arizona, and Illinois. For additional information about the Company, please visit www.whitestonereit.com. The Investor Section of the Company's website has links to SEC filings, news releases, financial reports and investor newsletters.
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