The Irvine Company has acquired the 900,000-square-foot Irvine Center Towers office complex near John Wayne Airport.
Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed. Brokers have valued the office complex at about $325 million, or $360 per square foot.
“We have always had great faith in Orange County,” spokesman Bill Rams said in a statement. “It is one of the most vibrant markets in the nation, with an educated workforce and a diverse economy. Therefore, when the right opportunity has presented itself, we have made a few acquisitions.”
Irvine Center Towers is the first local office tower the Newport Beach-based company has bought.
The Irvine Co. is said to to be the winning bidder for Newport Gateway Towers in Newport Beach in a deal valued at about $220 million. The company has declined comment on Newport Gateway.
Irvine Center Towers, at Von Karman Avenue and Michelson Drive, includes four black 11-story office buildings and Prego Ristorante.
As of November, the complex was about 95% full and includes the headquarters of business software maker Epicor Software Corp. and New Century Financial Corp., one of the nation’s largest subprime mortgage lenders.
Philadelphia-based Healthcare insurer Cigna Corp. had owned about 80% of Irvine Center Towers. Houston-based Transwestern Commercial Services owned the rest and has managed the site.
There are plans to build a 230,000-square-foot office building at Irvine Center Towers. Irvine Co. is already committed to building two local office buildings, a pair of 14-story towers, at the Irvine Spectrum.
