Source: bizjournal.com

Get the tropical shirts ready. A new wave of beach-themed restaurants is crashing into Alabama.

Hurricane Grill & Wings area developer Tom Petska is seeking investors to open a minimum of 10 franchises across Alabama, including four in Birmingham, over the next eight years, as I reported this week.

For the real estate market, this signals something special, I was told by Alabama Restaurant Association .Alabama Restaurant Association Latest from The Business Journals Hurricane Grill swirling into Alabama with 10 restaurantsVirginia College cooks up Mobile Culinard schoolTide football announcer Eli Gold to open Italian eatery in Pelham Follow this company .President Lawrence Fidel: “The worst is behind” the restaurant industry.

Emphasizing that point, a Leeds restaurant is relocating to Birmingham with plans to expand, as I also reported today.

Black Jack Bar & Grille, which leased 2,200 square feet at a price of $18.50 per, is taking over the former location of O.T.’s Neighborhood Sports Grill in the Dolly Creek Station shopping center.

I spoke with a longtime tenant there who declined to give me his name told me that the spot was bad Ju-Ju for restaurants. Black Jack, he said, would be the fifth eatery he’s seen go in there.

But even with that track record, the spot has its appeal. As Terry Ponder of Ponder Properties Inc. told me, his group had considered buying the shopping center before Barber Cos. took it.

The area, he continued, has several mega churches that contribute to a steady flow of Sunday traffic, and a good family restaurant there is sure to attract a few pewfuls.

In other news, Graham & Co. and EGS Commercial Real Estate Inc. .EGS Commercial Real Estate Inc. Latest from The Business Journals Real Estate Roundup: Metro Bar to open downtownReal estate roundup: What does the future hold for B&A?Real estate roundup: Notable CRE deals Follow this company .reported several recent leases and transactions.

Graham & Co. said these third quarter transactions exceeded $27.8 million:

• A three-building industrial complex at 200 Parker Drive in Pelham totaling 131,462 square feet on 10 acres. EGS Commercial Real Estate represented the buyer, Faces Inc.

• A 74,800-square-foot, crane-served warehouse in Bessemer at 201 Kilsby Circle on 10.21 acres. The buyer was Precision Grinding Co., which will expand its local operations.

• Office buildings at 400 and 700 Caldwell Trace. The Page T. Smith Foundation purchased the 3,000-square-foot No. 400 building. The American Red Cross bought the 23,470-square-foot No. 700 building; it was represented by Sandner Commercial Real Estate.

• Two industrial buildings in the Academy Drive Industrial Park. One was a 10,800-square-foot building at 1100 Powder Plant Road and the other was a 10,400-square-foot building at 5611 Shirley Park Dr.

On the leasing side, deals included:

• 61,195 square feet of warehouse space at 200 Citation Court, co-brokered with J.H. Berry & Gilbert .J.H. Berry & Gilbert Latest from The Business Journals Companies on the Move – July 29Real Estate Roundup: Hoar starts hospital constructionExperts sound off on economic hotspots Follow this company ..

• Representing Atherotech Inc. in an expansion and long-term renewal of 41,000-square-foot office and lab space at 201 London Parkway in the Lakeshore Crossings Business Park. Engel Realty represented the landlord.

• A 27,500-square-foot warehouse at 288 Snow Dr. in Pelham to New Latitudes Moving Co., which is expanding its operations.

• Representing Dixon Hughes Goodman LLP accounting firm in an expansion and renewal of 12,500 square feet of office space at 2140 11th Ave. South, known as the Park Building.

EGS brokers Brad Moffatt and Stuart Brock represented the landlord in each of these transactions:

The Scooter Store, America’s leading supplier of scooters and power chairs for people with limited mobility, has finalized plans to open a new location at Avondale Commerce Park. The distributor will now operate from 7,200 square feet of industrial space. Royce Emerson with Engel Realty Co. .Engel Realty Co. Latest from The Business Journals B&A Warehouse future uncertainBirmingham Business Hall of Fame inductees namedReal estate roundup: Cellular Sales takes former Movie Gallery space Follow this company .represented the tenant in the lease transaction.

Master & Associates, Inc. – electrical contractors for major commercial, institutional and industrial projects – has renewed its lease of 5,000 square feet of industrial space. The company will remain located at Cahaba Valley Business Park.

Crystal Mountain Water, water distributors catering to north and central Alabama as well as parts of Tennessee, has also renewed their lease at Commerce Square Business Park. They will continue to occupy 4,950 square feet of industrial space in Irondale.

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