Avanir Pharmaceuticals Inc., a drugmaker whose products focus on disorders of the central nervous system, is significantly upping the size of its footprint at its Aliso Viejo headquarters.
Avanir, which moved from San Diego to Aliso Viejo in 2006, and was acquired by Japan’s Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co. for $3.5 billion in 2015, currently occupies nearly 69,000 square feet at the 30 Enterprise building that’s part of the city’s Summit office campus.
A new, expanded deal at the same four-story office will bring its space up to about 112,000 square feet, according to CBRE Group Inc.’s Carol Trapani, a senior vice president at the brokerage’s Newport Beach office who worked on the deal on behalf of the drugmaker.
“This was a great opportunity for Avanir to accommodate its growth as it expands and advances its product lines,” Trapani said.
The expanded lease is among the largest new office deals struck in South OC this year, and adds to a string of notable healthcare-related office deals in the city over the course of this year. Both device maker MicroVention Inc., 30,000 square feet; and genetic testing firm Ambry Genetics, 110,000 square feet, have added space nearby over that time.
TI Work Underway
Avanir has been a tenant at the Summit since 2006, when it relocated to the area.
It first occupied about 30,000 square feet at 20 Enterprise Way, and later moved into its larger, 69,000-square-foot space at the neighboring 30 Enterprise Way in 2014.
Both buildings are part of the 1.7-million-square-foot Summit office campus next to the San Joaquin Hills (73) Toll Road.
Avanir is investing heavily in tenant improvements at its new space, according to Trapani. Its new lease at 30 Enterprise runs seven years.
The company targets central nervous system disorders through its two primary drugs: Nuedexta, which treats pseudobulbar affect, a neurological condition marked by uncontrollable outbursts of laughing or crying; and Onzetra Xsail, an intranasal medication that treats migraines.
It is unclear how many employees Avanir’s new headquarters will house, but conservative estimates place the figure at nearly 400 people. The company ranked No. 5 in last week’s Business Journal list of OC’s top drugmakers, with close to 200 area workers estimated to work in the city.
Avanir was among OC’s most valuable publicly traded medical companies prior to its sale to Otsuka. Its CEO at the time of that sale five years ago was Keith Katkin; he now runs Irvine’s Urovant Sciences Ltd., an early-stage drugmaker that went public last year and counts a $320 million value.
Avanir is now led by President and CEO Wa’el Hashad, who joined the company two years ago.
