Ethanol Fuel Startup Leases 61,483 SF

DENTON, TX-A start-up ethanol company, with ties in Virginia and North Texas, has leased 61,483 sf in Granite Point Business Park, a 100-acre, interstate-fronting development with 297,500 sf of phase one spec to fill. The five-year deal bumps occupancy to 45%.

Jeff Jackson, industrial leasing manager for Dallas-based Granite Properties, tells GlobeSt.com that Tetra Point Fuels’ space will take six months to build out so it will be nearly midyear by the time the operation ramps up at 2340 I-35W, a 152,500-sf building positioned at the rear of the phase one development. Tetra will carve out 6,000 sf for office space and the balance will be production area.

Tetra Point Fuels’ plan is to convert fermented and outdated food and beverages into ethanol. Jackson says a special-use permit was required for the operation, which does necessitate exterior storage tanks.

Jackson says Tetra Point founder Timothy Geiger of Virginia has government contracts for research and development of ethanol fuel and is working closely with the University of North Texas at its research facilities. Jackson says the Granite Point location is “a great fit” due to its proximity to UNT and the tenant’s ability to use the university’s wastewater ponds. James Deaton with Infinit Realty Group of Southlake, TX represented Tetra Point, which has a temporary office at 1304 Cayenne Dr. in Flower Mound.

Granite’s first phase includes a 145,000-sf building with interstate frontage, but Jackson says Tetra Point’s needs are better suited to the rear building. The office/warehouse’s quoted rate is $4.95 per sf net and the interstate-fronting 145,000-sf building is $5.25 per sf net. The finish-out allowance is $6 per sf.