COMMERCIAL
A few more details are emerging on Newport Beach-based chipmaker Mindspeed Technologies Inc.’s expected relocation to Aliso Viejo.
In November, our technology reporter Sarah Tolkoff reported that the maker of chips for routers, switches, networking gateways and other gear was eyeing a move to a new location in Aliso Viejo’s Summit Office Campus.
That story followed a few weeks of chatter from area brokers that a deal could be in the works.
Mindspeed, which was spun off from Newport Beach’s Conexant Systems Inc. in 2003, currently has about 144,000 square feet at its Newport Beach office building, which it leases from Conexant, according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The Jamboree Road sublease, which was extended for two years in 2008, is set to expire in June.
Mindspeed’s new headquarters looks to be much smaller, if the latest brokerage data proves correct. Fourth-quarter brokerage data reports that Mindspeed will be leasing 70,000 square feet of space at 30 Enterprise.
That building is one of the two new for-lease offices built on the Summit Office Campus by Aliso Viejo’s Parker Properties LP. The building also holds the global surgical headquarters of Rochester, N.Y.-based Bausch & Lomb Inc.
Neither Mindspeed nor the developer has confirmed the company’s new lease at 30 Enterprise.
The chipmaker will be releasing its latest quarterly earnings Monday. The company is believed to have roughly 260 workers in Orange County, including those in labs and testing.
Brea Plaza Upgrades
Detroit-based real estate developer and investor Bosc Equities LLC has landed a $28 million loan to help in the upcoming redevelopment of the Brea Plaza shopping center.
Bosc Equities, which bought the 150,000-square-foot center 15 years ago, plans to increase the outdated center’s space by about 15,000 square feet, expand parking capacity and improve access from local roads. The property’s on Imperial Highway near the Orange (57) Freeway.
Los Angeles’ Canyon-Johnson Urban Funds, a private real estate fund that’s run by Canyon Capital Realty Advisors and a business led by former Lakers great Magic Johnson, provided the senior loan.
Brea’s KPRS Construction Services will serve as the general contractor for the project and Architects Orange is the leading architect. The renovation project is expected to break ground shortly, with a completion targeted for December.
The project had been put on hold for several months while waiting for a municipal bond required to fund related work on a nearby flood channel. That issue has been resolved, according to the developer and its lender.
New tenants at the redeveloped center will include a Brea 5 Cinemas, Total Wine & More, Chick-Fil-A and Panera, according to Bosc Equities. Existing tenants who will remain at the site include Borders, Lucille’s Smokehouse, Starbucks, AT&T, Denny’s and Buca Di Beppo.
Grocer Expansion
Anaheim-based Northgate Gonzalez Market, the county’s largest Hispanic grocer, is expanding into Ventura County.
The company announced this month that it signed a 30-year lease on a 77,000-square-foot space at the Centepointe Center in Oxnard. The grocer was represented by James Rodriguez of CB Richard Ellis Group Inc.’s commerce office. Rodriguez represents Northgate Gonzalez exclusively.
The new store will be the chain’s first location in Ventura County. Northgate Gonzalez currently has 30 stores in Orange, Los Angeles and San Diego counties.
Northgate Gonzalez, which recently broke ground on a headquarters and distribution building in Anaheim, said that it plans to begin remodeling the Oxnard space in a few months and should open in the summer.
TechSpace in LA
Aliso Viejo-based office campus operator TechSpace Inc. has added a location in Los Angeles.
The company, which provides flexible lease terms and ready-to-use technology for smaller businesses, recently acquired 20,000 square feet of space in a Westwood office tower. The building’s on the 17th floor of Equity Office Properties Trust’s Westwood Center, at 1100 Glendon Ave.
The space was bought from a similar company called Nexspace, which had run the property since 2001.
The space accommodates up to 39 companies and 200 employees, according to the company.
In addition to its Aliso Viejo headquarters, which total about 86,000 square feet, TechSpace also has a trio of locations in New York. Additionally, the company’s negotiating to acquire more office space in several New York and California submarkets, according to Chief Executive James “Watty” Watson.
