COMMERCIAL
Proving the John Wayne Airport area isn’t the only place for big office sales, Laguna Niguel-based Birtcher Anderson Realty recently bought two office towers in Fullerton. The office buildings are something of a city landmark.
The price was not disclosed.
Lately, Orange County’s premier office towers have been changing hands for around $300 per square foot. But Fullerton Towers, as they’re called, are older buildings and likely traded for much less.
James and Gregory Knapp of Costa Mesa-based The Brookhollow Group sold the towers, which are nine and seven stories tall and total 223,561 square feet.
The deal also included land that is leased to Farmer Boys for the construction of a restaurant.
The towers, on Harbor Boulevard, are near the city’s downtown, which has been undergoing a revival with new eateries and upscale apartments.
Robert Smith, Michael Kane, Karen Scholte and Erin Brehm of CB Richard Ellis Group Inc.’s Newport Beach office represented the seller.
Paying to Leave
More news on subprime lender New Century Financial Corp., which is consolidating its operations at Park Place in Irvine. The company recently said it paid $521,734 to Newport Beach-based The Irvine Company to break its lease at 200 Commerce in Irvine.
New Century was leasing 43,760 square feet until it broke the contract in November. The deal was set to expire in November 2007.
Brokers often have speculated on the fate of office space taken in recent years by mortgage companies if there is a major industry consolidation as a result of rising interest rates.
That makes the New Century deal notable. One theory is that mortgage companies won’t return huge blocks of space because they would have to pay sizeable fees to landlords to get out of lease contracts.
It looks like New Century’s escape wasn’t too painful.
Out of County
Costa Mesa-based Donahue Schriber Realty Group Inc. recently began construction on four shopping centers in California. None are in OC.
Five more centers are in the works.
Two centers under construction are anchored by Pleasanton-based Safeway Inc. The company is building Laguna Reserve Marketplace, a 90,000-square-foot center in Elk Grove. The other center, Green Valley Marketplace, totals 108,000 square feet in El Dorado Hills.
Two centers are set to be anchored by Modesto-based Save Mart Supermarkets,a new anchor for Donahue. Save Mart operates about 120 stores in Central and Northern California.
The developer has broken ground on a 91,000-square-foot center in Lathrop, and a 96,000-square-foot center in Fresno.
All four centers should open late this year.
Among the five more planned centers is Rocklin Crossings, a 455,000-square-foot center set to be developed in partnership with Sierra Holdings. The $37-million project is located in Rocklin.
Donahue is set to start construction in June 2006.
The company plans another venture with a different partner to build a 66,000-square-foot center in Sacramento.
Donahue hasn’t given up on Southern California. It plans a 650,000-square-foot center in the Menifee area. The $62-million project should break ground late next year.
RESIDENTIAL
Studley Promotion
Studley recently promoted Royce Sharf to executive vice president from his previous title as senior vice president.
He opened the brokerage’s Irvine office in 1987 and now manages its OC operations.
Sharf has done some $400 million in deals over the years. He’s also added insight to some Orange County Business Journal stories. Thanks, man.
Santa Ana-based Nexus Cos. has begun work on 19 houses and 133 condos set to replace the once swank Biltmore Hotel in Palm Springs.
Some residents wanted to preserve the hotel, designed by architect Fred Monhoff in the low-slung modernist style that defined the desert city.
Garth Erdossy, who heads Nexus’ residential arm, said the hotel was in a state of decline when the company acquired the loan on the property in 2003. He said it had been vacant for about 20 years and was considered a safety risk by the city and local fire department.
He said City Council had issued an order to demolish the hotel.
Nexus now is shooting for the elusive cool factor of the old hotel, which used to have some of the Rat Pack-era allure common to Palm Springs and Las Vegas.
The condos are set to surround a clubhouse with some of the design elements of the old hotel as well as three pools, a bar, and cabanas with stereo speakers.
The project, dubbed The Biltmore Colony, includes seven to 10 condos per building,each building is set to look like one large house. The first homes should be done by summer. The condos are set for spring 2006.
