COSTA MESA — The sprawling headquarters that houses one of the nation’s fastest-growing defense technology companies is up for sale, which could become Southern California’s largest commercial real estate deal of the year.
Joint venture owners SteelWave LLC, based in Foster City, and Invesco Real Estate, based in Dallas, are marketing The Press, Anduril Industries’ 634,000-square-foot office and research-and-development campus in Costa Mesa, according to Bloomberg News.
Bloomberg did not share an asking price but estimates the property could sell for up to $400 million based on its financing. CoStar reports that the joint venture received a $251 million loan from a PIMCO affiliate for the property last year.
Eastdil Secured represents the JV in marketing the property. The company declined to comment to the Business Journal. A SteelWave spokesperson said the company had no comment until the sale is complete.
Orange County Defense Companies
The offering highlights Orange County’s emergence as one of the country’s fastest-growing defense technology hubs, led by Anduril.
With more U.S. military spending and fast progress in autonomous systems and artificial intelligence, companies such as Anduril, Dzyne Technologies in Irvine and Huntington Beach-based Mach Industries and Karman Space & Defense have quickly expanded in the region.
South Korean satellite communications company Intellian Technologies recently opened a new 75,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Irvine, which will serve as its new U.S. headquarters.
Company officials said this move is to meet growing demand in the defense market.
Anduril’s OC Space
Anduril, co-founded in 2017 by Palmer Luckey and CEO Brian Schimpf, develops autonomous drones, surveillance systems and defense software that uses artificial intelligence.
Last month, the company raised $5 billion in a Series H, led by Thrive Capital and Andreessen Horowitz, bringing the defense company’s valuation to $61 billion.
Invesco and SteelWave acquired the 24-acre site on Sunflower Avenue near IKEA, the former location of the Los Angeles Times’ Orange County offices, in 2017 for $65 million.
The two companies began redeveloping the property into a creative office space in 2019.
Anduril, which was previously based in Irvine, signed a lease in 2021 to fully occupy The Press.
Since then, as the company has grown, it has continued to lease nearby warehouses and other facilities (See page 8).
Most recently, the company signed a lease to occupy part of the new LogistiCenter at 55, a 177,766-square-foot industrial building.
Anduril officials told the Business Journal they plan to use the Tustin location as a logistics hub to support their nearby campus operations.
According to Business Journal data, Anduril now leases almost 1.5 million square feet of office and warehouse space in Orange County.
Bloomberg reported that Anduril has about 13 years left in its lease, making the property attractive to institutional buyers seeking stable, long-term cash flow.
