OC Developers Plan Office, Industrial, Retail in Corona
By JOSEPH ASCENZI
Corona is on the verge of encircling more office and industrial projects as well as big home improvement retailers, thanks to projects planned by two Orange County developers.
Corona Point is a 50-acre mixed-used development to be built on empty land near Interstate 15 and Magnolia Avenue, said Nancy Martin, manager of Corona economic development.
Orange-based Rexco LLC, which has built several projects in Corona, plans to include a Lowe’s Cos. home improvement store at Corona Point, as well as restaurants and smaller stores, Martin said.
Lowe’s is expected to get its building permits from the city within two weeks, according to Martin.
“Lowe’s has wanted to be in Corona for years,” Martin said. “They’ve just been looking for the right location.”
The two six-story office buildings Rexco plans to build on speculation at Corona Point might be more important for the city, Martin said.
The buildings, which are set to be 120,000 square feet each, will give Corona high-end office space it needs as businesses,particularly from OC,consider expanding or locating there.
“Almost all of our office space is leased out, and everyone is looking at us to see when we’re going to get more,” Martin said. “A big part of that demand is that we’re the gateway to Orange County. It seems like we’re at the front of the line when anyone there wants to expand.”
The two office buildings are set to be built during the first phase of Corona Point.
A cluster of smaller office buildings is planned for the second phase.
Corona Point is in the design and review process. So far, Lowe’s is the only company committed to the project, Martin said.
Further along in the process is Corona Crossroads, a 10-building industrial project to be built on speculation on a vacant site east of Corona Point.
Corona Crossroads, which is being developed by Birtcher Community Development, part of Laguna Niguel-based Birtcher Real Estate Group, is set to be built in two phases on about 40 acres, said Dick Roby, first vice president with CB Richard Ellis Services Inc. in Ontario.
The first phase calls for four buildings ranging in size from 71,500 to 87,000 square feet.
Buildings in the second phase are set to range from 43,000 to 128,000 square feet, Roby said.
Construction on the second phase is set to start as soon as two buildings in the first phase are sold or leased, he said.
The buildings will be designed for either light manufacturing or warehouse and distribution use, Roby said.
Birtcher bought the land for the project for an undisclosed sum in November from the Riverside County Flood Control District, said Alan Tuntland, the company’s development coordinator.
All 10 buildings together are set to make up about 768,000 square feet. The buildings will be sold or leased.
“We aren’t picky,” Tuntland said. “We’ll take either short-term gain or long-term cash flow. Either one is fine with us.”
The buildings are set to include basketball courts and even citrus groves to attract tenants or buyers, Tuntland said.
“People can pick the fruit off the trees and take it home if they want to,” he said.
Birtcher sees Rexco’s Corona Point project as a good thing for Corona Crossroads, Tuntland said.
“It’s definitely going to make our project more attractive,” he said. “People are going to be able to walk to lunch, which will make things a lot easier for the people who work there.”
Corona’s real estate market should stay hot, Tuntland predicted, thanks to Orange County toll roads.
“The toll roads move against traffic, and they’ve made it easier to live in Mission Viejo or Tustin and work in Corona,” Tuntland said. “It’s easier to get from those places to Corona than it is to take the 91 freeway into Anaheim.”
Ascenzi covers real estate for The Business Press in Ontario.
