Retail After Harvey: Q&A with Weitzman’s James Namken

When Tropical Storm Harvey finally departed from Houston and Southeast Texas, it left behind a lot of flooding and damage. One positive outcome is that the retail sector ended up not being as ravaged as it could have been. Connect Media asked Weitzman’s Senior Vice President James Namken how Houston’s retail sector weathered the storm, and its very wet aftermath.

Q. How badly was Houston’s retail sector hit by Hurricane Harvey?
A. (Weitzman) leases and manages more than four million square feet of retail space throughout Houston, and as devastating as Harvey was, we know it could have been worse. Yes, the storm brought record rain and flooding, but it did not bring high winds. High winds, which can tear off roofs and collapse buildings, are where storms can do the most damage. Throughout the storm, our leadership and property professionals monitored the situation as well as possible; many kept working even as some experienced damage to their own homes. Multiply this hard work throughout the Houston retail real estate community, and you can see why so many retail centers are back up and running.

Q. Where there areas of Houston that experienced more damage to retail properties than others?
A. In terms of retail properties, the market saw damage mainly limited to Cypress, Kingwood and western Houston areas. But, we’re seeing a pretty fast pace of repairs and recovery, and throughout the market, many centers are returning to business as usual.

Q. How do you think the aftermath of the storm will impact the retail sector in the Houston metro?
A. If there is a disruption in the retail market, we think it will be temporary. All of the economic factors that drove Houston’s retail health before the storm are still in place. One thing of note: Our portfolio includes centers anchored by grocers like Kroger, H-E-B and Walmart. We’re humbled by the way grocers, restaurants and other retailers responded to this storm, first by working to keep as many stores open and as well stocked as possible throughout the storm, and then by re-opening closed stores as quickly as possible after it passed.

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