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MyDealBook.com, a social-networking website designed to accommodate the varied needs of cross-industry real estate professionals, is now up and running. The launching of the social media website is indicative of the increasingly important role technology will play in the commercial real estate industry. MyDealBook.com–established by former real estate data site PropertyShark.com CEO Ryan Slack, along with Mark Schacknies and Nima Negahban–brings together professionals in areas ranging from construction and brokerage to appraisal and finance for the purpose of networking, collaborating and expanding business opportunities. Slack said that the new website is the natural extension of PropertyShark.com, which supplies members with…

It may seem unlikely that any new twists could still be in store for Greater Las Vegas’ retail market. But this morning, the developers of the M Resort, Spa and Casino offered a glimpse of what its developers called a first-of-its-kind for Nevada: the state’s first regional shopping center incorporated into a casino resort. During a presentation at RECon, the International Council of Shopping Centers’ annual convention in Las Vegas, Taubman Centers Inc. unveiled conceptual plans for the 1 million-square-foot retail component of the $1 billion M Resort. Located about eight miles south of the Las Vegas Strip, the project…

Goddard Investment Group L.L.C. has sold a 135,000-square-foot office building at 675 Bering Dr. in Houston to Griffin Partners for an undisclosed amount. In addition, Goddard is also putting the 218,000-square-foot, 21-story 801 Travis St. tower (pictured) in Houston’s Central Business District on the market. A spokesperson for Goddard declined to comment on the sale and the listing of 801 Travis, but indicated that Goddard planned to remain in the Houston market with its ownership of the 1.3 million-square-foot Heritage Plaza, which the firm acquired in 2005 for about $130 million from ING Clarion. Griffin Partners, the new owner of…

What does it take to become a great CEO? Much more than it did even five years ago to be sure. The rapidly changing global landscape and the evolving complexity of business makes the job of CEO something that is only well-suited for a rare few. For these reasons sustainable success at the C-suite level is an elusive thing in today’s business world. With the average tenure of a CEO being less than 5 years it is critical for executives to understand what it takes to beat the odds. In today’s column I’ll examine the characteristics that a CEO must…

Second-, and even third-tier cities, should be on corporations’ radar screens. They are good places to locate new manufacturing plants, call centers and IT hubs, a study on corporate development hot spots has concluded.The study, released at the CoreNet Global Summit in May, found that rising labor shortages, and high employee turnover, plague cities such as Bangalore and Shanghai. The study concluded that corporate investment dollars can be put to better use in some lesser-known locations. Wadley-Donovan-Gutshaw Consulting co-authored the study, along with Tractus Asia Ltd. and Buck Consultants Intl. Dennis Donovan, principal at Wadley-Donovan-Gutshaw, recently discussed some of the…

The city of San Rafael, in western Argentina, has approved a major expansion of Algodon Wine Estates, a winery and luxury resort, an expansion that will include a luxury hotel of about 50 suites, according to an announcement by InvestProperty Group L.L.C.,  the resort’s developer and owner.Algodon Wine Estates encompasses more than 2,000 acres in the foothills of the Sierra Pintada Mountains at the base of the Andes. The property currently has a boutique winery, lodge, clubhouse, restaurant and nine-hole golf course. The expansion will add, in addition to the hotel, four residential villages; two world-class 18-hole golf courses; a…

New York City is a tough place to build, and no areas are more challenging to developers than the city’s historic neighborhoods, as the experience of the Rudin Organization and St. Vincent’s Hospital Manhattan has just proved again. The developer and the hospital will have to come up with a new plan to build a new hospital and market-rate residential units after the city’s Landmarks Preservation Commission turned down the team’s $1.6 billion redevelopment proposal in Greenwich Village. Objections from community groups over the project’s scale helped scuttle the proposal for a 329-foot-tall, 625,000-square-foot hospital building and 400 units of…

To the surprise of many analysts, retail sector seemed to catch a break from months of downbeat news this week. Leading the parade was the U.S. Commerce Department’s disclosure that consumer spending outside of the automotive industry ticked up a half-percent in April. Chain stores had a good month, too, as sales improved by 3.6 percent from March to April. And the country’s biggest retail REIT, Simon Property Group Inc., reported that funds from operations inched up about 7 percent compared to the same period last year. Both retailers and retail real estate professionals undoubtedly welcome any signs that the…

Yale University’s new Sculpture Building has been named to the American Institute of Architect’s top ten green projects of 2008 list. The building, designed by architects Stephen Kieran and James Timberlake, also earned a platinum LEED certificate. Both recognitions are for the building’s sustainable architecture and, in particular, its innovative energy-saving “envelope.” The envelope was designed and made by Newington, Conn.-based Schuco USA , a subsidiary of the German parent company, Schuco International.The Sculpture Building is part of a major campus-wide initiative. Yale has stated a commitment to the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions to 10 percent below 1990…

Less than a month after the launch of Thompson National Properties L.L.C., the firm has acquired two Dallas Class B office buildings as the company’s first acquisition on behalf of the Bruin Fund, a $250 million opportunity fund. The properties, Oakwood Tower and One Lee Park West, were acquired for an undisclosed amount. Located in the Uptown/Turtle Creek submarket, the buildings total approximately 118,400 leasable square feet. Built in 1964 and 1972, the properties are designed for smaller tenants ranging from 500 to 6,000 square feet. The buildings are considered value added because rents are 30 to 40 percent below…