The airport area landscape may change slightly, if Layton-Belling & Associates goes ahead with plans to develop a four-story, 80,000-square-foot office building.
“May,” however, is the key word.
Layton-Belling paid a private investor an undisclosed amount for the 2-acre property on Michelson Drive at Von Karman Avenue in December. But economic uncertainty has the developer weighing whether to press on with plans for a new building or to upgrade the existing 25,000-square-foot office building at the site.
For now, Layton-Belling’s plans call for moving forward on the new building with Irvine-based Snyder Langston on board as the general contractor, Voit Commercial Brokerage handling marketing and Irvine-based LPA Inc. providing architectural design.
“We are currently finishing up plans and getting ready to submit them to the city,” said Steve Briggs, a principle with Layton-Belling. “We’ve just completed the design phase and are now finalizing costs and nailing down the budget.”
An initial rendering of the project has been completed. The images reveal a glass building buffered by trees. Two palms frame the entryway.
“It’s a pure office-type facility on one of the true undeveloped sites within the Irvine Business Complex,” Briggs said. “We envision it as a Class A office building built along the lines of the surrounding buildings but on a smaller scale.”
The site’s existing building is vacant. According to Briggs, the building’s multiple tenants, including Webster University, all had short-term leases and left as they expired. Tony Gleason of Voit Commercial Brokerage represented Layton-Belling in buying the property.
Layton-Belling, founded in 1991 by former Koll Co. executives Phil Belling and Steve Layton, earned a reputation in the 1990s as a savvy asset manager and developer, buying property during economic dips and reaping the benefits once the market rebounded.
The firm spent the decade engaged in a partnership with Boston pension fund advisor AEW Capital Management LP.
In early 1998, Layton-Belling sold most of its portfolio to Arden Realty Inc. The Beverly Hills-based real estate investment trust acquired 50 properties totaling some 5.2 million square feet of commercial space for $615 million, plus warrants for the purchase of 2.5 million shares of Arden’s common stock.
Among Layton-Belling’s assets is the 114,888-square-foot Aliso Corporate Center in Aliso Viejo.
As the firm wades through the city entitlement issues on its Michelson Drive property, it said it is leaving options open on the site’s final use.
“In another 60 days we’ll know much more,” Briggs said. “We’ll continue to watch the market and make a prudent play.” n
