After a 2 1/2- year search, AirTouch Communications finally settled last year on its new site to consolidate more than 2,000 employees in Orange County.
Signing a 10-year lease, the telecommunications giant will move into 477,000 square feet in the Irvine Spectrum around this November.
The site, being developed by Lowe Enterprises, will include five buildings and replace offices at three different locations in Irvine.
“They wanted to stay close to their employee base and they wanted a campus environment,” said Jeff Manley of the Staubach Co. in Irvine, who represented AirTouch in the deal. “The Spectrum location provided all of that, as well as the best price for what they wanted to accomplish.”
Finding a large enough chunk of land to meet the company’s needs was quite a challenge, he added.
“When you’re doing a campus of this magnitude, you’re limited by the opportunities to find a 30- to 35-acre site that suits your needs,” said Manley. “We looked at all types of different options.”
Building on its own or purchasing an existing space turned out to be secondary choices, however. Manley said AirTouch’s first choice , to pursue a build-to-suit deal , generated a lot of interest.
“About a year and a half into the search process, we paired the list to five finalists,” said Manley. “Then the selection of the site took about a year.”
Largest Office Lease
SAND CANYON AVENUE AT IRVINE
CENTER DRIVE
Irvine
477,000 sq. ft.
Tenant: AirTouch Cellular
Tenant Agent: The Staubach Co.
Landlord: Lowe Enterprises
Landlord Agent: None
Deal Terms: Build-to-suit, 10 years
PARK PLACE
3337, 3353, and 3355 Michelson Drive
400,000 sq. ft.
Tenant: ConAgra Grocery Products Co.
Tenant Agent: P.J. Morgan (Omaha-based consultant)
Landlord: Winthrop Management
Landlord Agent: Winthrop Management
Deal Terms: 10 years, $91 million
NEXUS TWIN TOWERS
MacArthur and Costa Mesa (55) Freeway
Santa Ana
125,000 sq. ft.
Tenant: MSC.Software Corp.
Tenant Agent: Equis Corp.
Landlord: Nexus Development
Landlord Agent: Nexus Development
Deal Terms: 12 years, $40 million
3200 PARKCENTER
3200 Parkcenter Drive
Costa Mesa
110,000 sq. ft.
Tenant: DiTech Funding
Tenant Agent: Jay Carnahan
Landlord: CalPERS/Commonwealth Partners
Landlord Agent: The Offices of South Coast Plaza
Deal Terms: 8 years, $24.5 million.
FIREMAN’S FUND INSURANCE
Jamboree Road at Walnut Avenue
Irvine
100,000 sq. ft.
Tenant: Fireman’s Fund Insurance
Tenant Agent: Lee & Associates
Landlord: Opus Southwest
Landlord Agent: Opus Southwest
Deal Terms: 10 years, $22 million
ERNST & YOUNG CENTER AT
LAKESHORE TOWERS
18111 Von Karman Ave.
93,000 sq. ft.
Tenant: Ernst & Young
Tenant Agent: Cushman Realty
Landlord: GE Capital
Landlord Agent: Cushman Realty
Deal Terms: 10 years, $26 million.
401 CIVIC CENTER DRIVE
401 Civic Center Drive
Tenant: Orange County District Attorney
Tenant Agent: None
Landlord: Caribou Industries
Landlord Agent: Caribou Industries
Deal Terms: 20 years, amount undisclosed
IRVINE CONCOURSE
2020 Main Street
Irvine
69,000 sq. ft.
Tenant: PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Tenant Agent: Cushman & Wakefield
Landlord Agent: CB Richard Ellis
PLAZA TOWER
600 Anton Blvd.
67,398 sq. ft.
Tenant: KPMG International
Tenant Agent: Staubach Co.
Landlord: IBM/C. J. Segerstrom & Sons
Landlord Agent: Offices of South Coast Plaza/Staubach Co.
Deal Terms: Sublease from Rockwell, 8 1/2 years, $15 million
QUEST SOFTWARE
8001 Irvine Center Drive
67,000 sq. ft.
Tenant: Quest Software
Landlord: The Irvine Co.
Landlord Agent: The Irvine Co.
Deal Terms: 6 years, $14.5 million
STADIUM CROSSING
2125 Katella Ave.
Anaheim
62,000 sq. ft.
Tenant: Hewlett-Packard Co.
Tenant Agent: Mitchell & David Leit Landlord: Crown Realty
Deal Terms: 10 years, $17 million
SUMMIT OFFICE CAMPUS, BUILDING C
85 Enterprise
Aliso Viejo
57,000 sq. ft.
Tenant: Buy.com
Tenant Agent: CB Richard Ellis
Landlord: AEW/Parker LLC
Landlord Agent: CB Richard Ellis
Deal Terms: 5 years, $8.25 million
Costa Mesa
55,000 sq. ft.
Tenant: Deutsche Financial Services
Landlord: C.J. Segerstrom, I.B.M
Landlord Agent: Offices of South Coast Plaza/C.J. Segerstrom
Deal Terms: Sublease, 9 years, $15 million
HARBOR CORPORATE PARK BUILDING E
Harbor Boulevard at Sunflower Avenue
Santa Ana
Tenant: The Art Institute of Los Angeles,Orange County
Tenant Agent: Grubb & Ellis/Trammell Crow
Landlord: CarrAmerica
Landlord Agent: CarrAmerica
Deal Terms: 15 years, $11.5 million
3355 Michelson Drive
Irvine
53,620 sq. ft.
Tenant: Caltrans
Tenant Agent: Julien Studley
Deal Terms: 12 years, $15 million
888 SAN CLEMENTE DRIVE
888 San Clemente Drive
Newport Beach
50,000 sq. ft.
Tenant: PaineWebber Group Inc.
Tenant Agent: Cushman Realty
Deal Terms: 10 years, $25 million
48,000 sq. ft.
Tenant: Regus Business Centers Corp.
Landlord: The Irvine Co.
Landlord Agent: The Irvine Co.
Deal Terms: 10 years, $15 million
ONE PACIFIC PLAZA
7755 Center Ave.
Huntington Beach
Tenant: LoansDirect.com
Tenant Agent: Corporate Realty Advisors
Landlord: Bentall Properties
Landlord Agent: John Gillespie
Deal Terms: 6 1/2 years, $7.5 million
PARK PLACE
3351 Michelson Drive
Irvine
47,678 sq. ft.
Tenant: Washington Mutual
Tenant Agent: Arlotti Real Estate
Landlord: Winthrop Management
Landlord Agent: Winthrop Management
Deal Terms: 5 years, $11 million
1900 Main St.
44,290 sq. ft.
Tenant: Lyon & Lyon LLP
Tenant Agent: The Gibson Co.
Landlord: Koll Co.
IRVINE CONCOURSE
Irvine
Tenant: Allen, Matkins, Leck, Gamble & Mallory
Tenant Agent: CB Richard Ellis
Landlord Agent: CB Richard Ellis
Deal Terms: 10 years, $15 million
Source: Cushman & Wakefield of Southern California
