Keith Cos. Mapping Military Sites; Steven Walker Homes Adds Sites
COMMERCIAL
The folks at Winthrop Management have made quite a dent on the amount of space available at the Park Place office park in Irvine, thanks to continued strong demand in the Orange County office market.
The latest tenant: Western United Insurance Co. The unit of San Francisco-based auto insurer California State Automobile Association signed a five-year lease for 53,761 square feet at Park Place. That brings the amount of open space at the complex down to a mere 131,000 square feet,a far cry from the more than 1 million square feet available after Fluor Corp. and several other tenants moved out in recent years.
So far this year, several new tenants have taken up more than 250,000 square feet at Park Place, off of Jamboree Road near the San Diego (I-405) Freeway in Irvine. In the past 12 months, more than 800,000 square feet of space has been leased to companies and organizations such as Flashcom Inc., ConAgra Inc.’s grocery products unit, Caltrans, Washington Mutual Inc., BAX Global Inc. and Beech Street Corp.
“We continue to see growing companies like Western United Insurance Co. looking to expand in an office campus environment,” said Janine R. Padia, vice president of Winthrop Management.
Matt Wiley of Travers Realty represented Western Insurance, while Winthrop Management represented itself.
DOD Taps Keith Cos.
Costa Mesa-based engineering and consulting firm The Keith Cos. has won a multiyear contract to provide surveying and mapping services to Department of Defense facilities in the U.S. and abroad. The initial work consists of four bases.
Tim Kihm, vice president of client services for The Keith Cos., said the contract is a culmination of two years of effort.
“It’s a new effort for the Department of Defense and it takes a long time to work through the various details to make sure the project will be a success for all parties involved,” he said.
Keith Cos. will serve as a subcontractor to BAE Systems Mission Solutions Inc. of San Diego. The National Imagery and Mapping Agency, a bureau within the Defense Department, awarded the job.
The deal could lead to other work for Keith Cos. and BAE Systems around the globe, a possibility that could generate millions of dollars in revenue for Keith Cos., Kihm said.
“This contract represents a long-term relationship between The Keith Cos. and BAE Systems,” he said.
Founders Financial Continues Sell-Off
Valley View Enterprises has purchased the 95,000-square-foot Valley View Shopping Center in Yorba Linda for $9 million from Founders Financial.
The move is the latest in a divestment drive by Founders Financial, which has managed to sell:
n The 75,000-square-foot Founder Business Center in Yorba Linda;
n The 200,000-square-foot La Habra Business Center in La Habra;
n The 124,000-square-foot Chatsworth Distribution Center;
n And the 25,000-square-foot Arden Square office project in Glendale.
Still on the block is a 45-acre parcel in Riverside. Ernest Brambilla and Camilla Kostic of Trammel Crow Co. represented Founders Financial.
Deals:
Layton Belling and Associates has tapped The L.E. Wentz Co. to build its 58,000-square-foot Airport Corporate Center office project in Irvine. The two-story building, which is being designed by LPA Inc., is scheduled to be completed in December. … C.V. Chelapati has purchased the last available building in the Vantage Business Center in Irvine, a 20,000-square-foot flex-tech building. Chelapati paid $3.5 million for the building and plans to move his engineering consulting firm there from Huntington Beach. Jim Cunningham of Grubb & Ellis’ Newport Beach office represented the seller, Dynamic Builders, while John Saunders of ERA Rafferty & Lloyd represented Chelapati.
RESIDENTIAL:
Riverside-based Steven Walker Homes has purchased an additional 78 lots in San Bernardino from Costa Mesa-based JMS Homes, adding to the 73 lots it had previously bought in the community. Total price for the 151 lots was roughly $3.7 million.
David Peery, one of the principals at Steven Walker Homes, said his firm will build entry-level products on the roughly 7,200-square-foot lots. Initial plans envision homes ranging from 1,700 to 2,500 square feet, with prices beginning from $150,000.
Steven Walker Homes was attracted to the lots because the firm was “able to get into the entry level price range and it’s a great location,” Peery said.
Grading on the site already had started, and sales are anticipated to begin in October. Model openings are scheduled for December, with first move-ins shortly thereafter.
Les Whittlesey of Whittlesey Doyle Real Estate Advisors was the broker on the deal.
