Former prison land selling fast in Sugar Land

SUGAR LAND – More than half of the 90 acres of prime commercial property in Sugar Land that was recently put up for sale at the master-planned community Telfair have sold with medical offices, a mixed-use development and multifamily project in the works.

Approximately 40 acres are left for sale at the southeast quadrant of US Hwy. 59, US Hwy. 69 and University Blvd.

San Diego-based Newland Communities, the developer behind the master-planned community Telfair, put the property up for sale in February.

Vista Equities Group purchased 14 acres of the Newland property to develop a mixed-use project tentatively dubbed University Commons. The $45 million project will be at the intersection of Hwy. 59 and University Dr. and includes 110,000 sf of retail space and 40,000 sf of office space. The approximate opening date will be mid-2016, according to Woody Mann Jr., president of Vista Equities.

"Upon full build-out, the property will add over a billion dollars of new capital investment and will be the home for several thousand employees,” said Charlie Herder, co-chairman & principal of Colliers International, who is marketing the land.

The land was originally owned by the Texas Prison System.