Fullerton’s Eastside Christian Church has made a name for itself as one of North County’s faster growing ministries.
For commercial real estate brokers, Eastside holds a different distinction: It’s among the few looking to buy a much bigger space.
The church has expanded to more than 5,000 members—roughly half the size of Garden Grove’s Crystal Cathedral Ministries—since its 1962 founding, including a recent growth burst.
Officials said earlier this year a 15-year growth plan was exceeded in a matter of months.
“A year ago we were able to grow dramatically because we had the space,” the church said in an online message to members. “Today growth is more incremental because we have filled our space.”
Eastside is planning an expansion if it can sell its existing Fullerton campus and find new space in North County.
The church runs out of an increasingly cramped 8.2-acre campus next to California State University, Fullerton. It has been searching for larger sites since early this year.
An older office site in Anaheim is rumored to be the leading spot for a move. But a finalized deal has yet to be struck, according to sources.
Staying in the church’s current Fullerton site appears unlikely. Expansion and redevelopment of the church’s campus would cost more than $30 million, Eastside officials estimate.
Considering the availability of larger properties at discounted prices these days, relocation is likely to be the more affordable option, officials said. Eastside reportedly has raised more than $6 million from its congregation to help pay for a new facility.
The church said earlier this year “relocation is the best course of action for the future ministry of Eastside.”
Eastside’s plans are to occupy a new campus by the end of 2012 or sooner, according to a statement.
Seeking Big Space
The church’s requirements for a new campus include a building with 250,000 square feet of space, room for a 3,000-seat auditorium and parking for as many as 2,000 cars.
That would be a major jump in size for the ministry, whose existing Fullerton campus totals about 91,000 square feet and includes an elementary school. Finding parking at the church’s Sunday services in particular has become a challenge, officials said.
Eastside said it is looking for a new campus within 15 minutes of its current location. The school also could be moved to the new site.
Church officials currently are focused on a 7-mile radius around the church, according to Eastside’s website. It largely draws its congregation from Fullerton, Placentia, Anaheim, Yorba Linda, Buena Park, La Habra, La Mirada and Orange.
Eastside is said to be eyeing a pair of Anaheim buildings about 4.5 miles away from its existing campus that previously were part of Boeing Co.’s sprawling local operations, according to real estate sources not directly involved in the deal.
The office buildings, off La Palma Avenue, total close to 400,000 square feet.
The buildings are in the heart of Anaheim’s industrial corridor along the Riverside (91) Freeway. They’re owned by Sacramento-based developer Panattoni Development Co., which declined to comment for this story.
Panattoni bought the buildings from Boeing in late 2007 as part of a 61-acre office and land deal after the defense company decided to relocate much of its local operations to Huntington Beach.
Fourteen buildings, totaling about 1.5 million square feet, traded hands in the Boeing deal. At the time the deal was struck, Panattoni and its financial partners were expected to head up a major campus-style redevelopment at the site, but pulled back as the real estate market weakened.
Brokers with the Anaheim office of CB Richard Ellis Group Inc. who have been marketing some of Panattoni’s Anaheim buildings said last month that they have 392,000 square feet of space under escrow.
Those buildings are on land totaling about 20 acres and have a combined asking price of $38.6 million, according to CoStar Group Inc.
A deal of that size would be the largest commercial real estate transaction seen in North County this year.
Officials with CB Richard Ellis and brokers representing the church declined to discuss a potential transaction.
Any deal is far from being finalized, according to sources. Eastside officials previously have said they’re looking at several sites and will need to get approval from members before finalizing any deal.
No redevelopment plans have been filed for the site, according to city officials.
Church’s Plans
The church’s plans are to present a specific site and proposal to the congregation by fall.
A sale also is contingent on Eastside selling its existing campus, where it’s been since 1964.
The Irvine office of Holliday Fenoglio Fowler LP, which also is representing the church in its search for new space, has the listing for the site, which is entitled for a 30,000-square-foot expansion. An asking price hasn’t been disclosed.
The site, on Yorba Linda Boulevard, would make a good choice for another church, school or student housing, according to the brokerage’s marketing materials.
The church is said to have received at least four formal offers for the existing campus, which is next to several smaller schools in addition to Cal State Fullerton’s campus.
