Tustin’s Flight office project, set to open in about a month, has a number of firsts going for it.
It’s Orange County’s first substantial ground-up creative office campus—Flight’s initial phase of development, an eight-building collection of offices, a 12,000-square-foot food hall and meeting space in total runs about 470,000 square feet—and is the first sizeable office project to open near John Wayne Airport in over a year.
Flight—which upon completion will be the largest office park in Tustin—also marks the largest commercial project to be built on the city’s former Marine base in about a dozen years, since the District at Tustin Legacy shopping center opened its doors.
Parke Miller, executive vice president of Lincoln Property Co., notes more mundane but notable achievements for the project, whose first phase of construction is estimated at about $150 million.
“We are ahead of schedule and under budget,” Miller told the Business Journal this month during a tour of the property.
The Costa Mesa office of Lincoln is developing the project with Boston-based real estate private equity firm Alcion Ventures LP.
The two bought the 17.5 acres holding the first phase of development in 2016 for a reported $26 million. They have a few years to close on the second land site that can accommodate nearly an additional 500,000 square feet of buildings.
The Lincoln-Alcion venture is the second development group tasked with the city’s office development in the shadow of the base’s two iconic blimp hangars. An earlier group headed by Shea Properties walked away from a planned mixed-use project in 2010 amid the last recession.
The change in development groups allowed for a re-thinking of the city’s office needs, and brought about the creative office focus for the project, which is next to a soon-to-open Tustin-run park near the intersection of Barranca Parkway and Red Hill Avenue.
“After years of talking about it, we are excited to finally unveil the project and get people here in person,” Miller said.
Tenant Wish List
With construction of the buildings wrapping up, landscaping work being finalized, and a series of large murals being painted on some of the structures by a handful of regional artists, Lincoln’s next task is nailing down tenants.
Flight’s first batch of occupants will begin building out their spaces in the next few weeks, with the first occupants moving in around mid-year, Miller said.
While he declined to disclose company names, Miller said the first leases to be finalized will likely to be technology companies “who understand the importance of having a dynamic office space.”
The tech industry “is comfortable being the first mover, and they are rewarded for that,” said Miller, who cited Lincoln’s work in the Playa Vista area of Westside Los Angeles as a blueprint for what his team is looking to achieve in Tustin.
Tenants are expected to range from Fortune 50 companies to smaller, more entrepreneurial firms looking to increase their OC presence, he said.
Coworking firms—the fastest-growing source of office leasing in OC the past year—were also cited by Miller as a likely occupant.
Work Well Win, a Greenwich, Conn.-based coworking firm whose only West Coast site is now in Santa Monica, lists Flight as a soon-to-open facility running about 25,000 square feet, with a May opening.
The local office of CBRE Group Inc. is handling leasing for the campus.
Monthly rents are in the range of $3.25 per square foot, Miller said.
Flight is the first big ground-up office project to open near John Wayne Airport since 2017’s opening of the Boardwalk in Irvine; signs at that project indicate its about 50% leased now.
The initial phase of construction at Flight includes two 90,000-square-foot buildings, one 93,000-square-foot building, a 145,000-square-foot office and four smaller-sized, single-tenant buildings, running from 6,500 to 13,000 square feet.
Those eight buildings will hold upward of 2,500 employees when leased.
Office tenants won’t be the only visitors to the project. Lincoln next month will be taking the wraps off The Mess Hall, a food-centric spot similar to Trade—the first upscale food hall in Irvine.
Lincoln Property opened Trade two years ago at 2222 Michelson Drive, a few blocks from John Wayne Airport. It’s now for sale.
Flight is also touting other amenities ranging from a bike share program to exercise classes to gathering spots with unique touches, like a hammock garden and outdoor stand-up desks. A new neighboring park managed by the city—the 26-acre Tustin Legacy Park—is also slated to open in a few months.
Next Up
Lincoln’s next area development will be a smaller-scale project in Costa Mesa: a revamp of an existing multitenant complex along Paularino Avenue that is also home to the Dallas-based real estate firm’s local office.
The $12 million renovation will update the façade of the four buildings, renovate a currently unused central courtyard and add an event space and coffee shop. The rebranded complex next to the Costa Mesa (55) Freeway, will be called Culture Yard.
The Costa Mesa planning commission recently approved the project. If all goes to plan, construction will wrap up by September.
The 72,500-square-foot campus is home to about seven tenants, like FBA Engineering, and preleasing is ongoing for “anywhere from three to five more tenants.”
One of these new tenants is coworking company FLDWRK, which is moving into part of a building taking up 13,000 square feet from its current location at 270 Baker St.
As with Flight, CBRE is handling leasing for Culture Yard.
