The Dallas Morning News'

historic former headquarters building in downtown Dallas is being sold to a partnership that includes the region's biggest commercial builder.

Developer KDC is paying $33 million for the 7.2-acre site at Young and Houston streets. It's partnering with Dallas restaurateur and businessman Mike Hoque in the deal.

Dallas-based KDC has built millions of square feet of suburban office space for companies including Toyota, State Farm Insurance, JPMorgan Chase and Liberty Mutual Insurance.

The pending sale of the vacant office building and surrounding campus comes a year after The News relocated its offices to the historic Dallas Public Library building on Commerce Street downtown.

KDC and partner Hoque Global - who together made a pitch for Amazon's coveted second headquarters on a building site near Dallas City Hall - have signed a contract to acquire the property and are set to close before the end of the year. The News' owner disclosed the contract in a regulatory filing Monday.

The News' former headquarters is next door to the Dallas Convention Center and across the street from the rail transit hub at Union Station.

The News' parent company A. H. Belo Corporation has been hunting since last year for a buyer for the 69-year-old newspaper offices and former printing plant building at 508 Young St.

The company talked with several potential buyers before reaching the agreement with KDC and Hoque Global.

"From the standpoint of the city's well being, this is a wonderful outcome," said A. H. Belo CEO Robert Decherd. "These guys know the city, care about the city and are here for the long term.

"Compared to the other scenarios, this is a great win for Dallas," he said. "And our company realizes the proceeds it deserves from its historic investment in this site. "

A. H. Belo previously said it expected to receive at least $30 million for the property. Chief Financial Officer Katy Murray said the company's board of directors will decide how the money is used.

The News' property was among the sites pitched to Amazon for its much-anticipated second headquarters. It was packaged in a 50-acre site with neighboring property owned Hunt Realty Investments.

The agreement with KDC and Hoque Global said that if The News' property was resold to Amazon, the proceeds would be shared with A. H. Belo.

Dallas architects GFF evaluated the old newspaper headquarters to study how parts of the structure - designed by noted architect George Dahl - could be repurposed in a new development. KDC and Hoque Global have also been working with the architects.

The agreement does not include requirements for the buyers to preserve any parts of the property, such as the three-story inscription known as the "Rock of Truth."

"If purchaser desires to discuss its proposed redevelopment of the property with the City of Dallas Landmark Commission after October 31, 2018, seller shall have the right to have its representatives participate in such discussions," the contract said.

Commercial real estate firms JLL, TAG Realty and Philip S. Smith & Co. negotiated the agreement.

The News had occupied the building from 1949 to late last year. According to the book Belo, From Newspapers to New Media, by Judith Garrett Segura, the longtime location was the idea of George Bannerman Dealey, who founded The News in 1885. He decided the paper needed to move from another downtown spot to a building with room for more staff and larger presses to meet the demands of a growing circulation.

Dahl, who had also designed the art deco buildings in Fair Park, was told to come up with a new structure for 508 Young St. that would last 50 to 100 years. The cost was about $6 million. It was dedicated in May 1949.

The News' property is one of the largest development sites in downtown Dallas with the potential for several million square feet of construction.

"From our perspective, the southwest quadrant is the next part of downtown's evolution," Decherd said.

Officials with KDC and Hoque Global would not talk about the transaction, saying they don't comment on pending transactions.

The purchase will give KDC and Hoque Global control of almost 30 acres of real estate on downtown's south side, making them one of the largest owners in the central business district.

KDC and Hoque Global hired world-renowned Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects to design a more than 8 million-square-foot development for a 20-acre property on Canton Street near Dallas City Hall.

KDC is just finishing up a 10-story office project in the Epic development in Dallas' Deep Ellum district. The company is best known for its $1.5 billion mixed-use CityLine project in Richardson. KDC also is a partner in the $3 billion Legacy West development in Plano.

Hoque Global has investments in multiple downtown-area properties. The company has operations in the restaurant, hospitality, event planning, technology, logistics and transportation businesses.