Bixby Land Company is bringing its inventive style for creative office development to San Diego with the purchase of four buildings in two separate transactions. The investments mark the ongoing focus by Bixby to develop innovative work place designs in select markets throughout the state.
“These are both outstanding opportunities to develop innovative space in excellent markets where demand is high,” said Bill Halford, president and CEO of Bixby Land Company.
The firm has purchased Mira Mesa Business Park, a 58,701-square-foot, three-building office park in the Sorrento Mesa area, the premier technology submarket in San Diego. Bixby paid $9.3 million for the project.
Bixby will invest $6.5 million to completely redesign the project. New glazing, new lobbies, upgraded elevators and a full landscaping and signage renovation will be completed over the next six months. The development will include three separate Bixby Retreat™ outdoor amenities areas, a feature that Bixby has pioneered in Silicon Valley and has proved to be in high demand by tenants.
Mira Mesa Business Park is located one mile east of the I-805 Freeway at Mira Mesa Blvd. and Oberlin Drive. Bixby purchased the property from 5889 Oberlin Drive Associates, which was represented by Lynn LaChapelle and Bob Prendergast of Jones Lang LaSalle.
In a second transaction, Bixby paid $12.5 million for a four-story office building at 9797 Aero Drive in the Kearney Mesa submarket of San Diego. The seller, who is unnamed, was represented by Thomas Mercer, Derek Hulse and Ty Moffatt of Colliers International. The 76,315-square-foot building features good access and high visibility to the I-15 Freeway, and was vacant at the time of sale.
Bixby plans a $10 million repositioning that includes the addition of 15,783 square feet of new office space. Bixby will also include its signature Bixby Retreat™, an energetic outdoor living room with numerous amenities.
“Companies place a premium on work environments where their employees can enjoy the outdoors without having to leave the property,” said Halford. “Our designs offer that experience, with highly amenitized outside areas that are a perfect fit for San Diego’s active lifestyle.”
Bixby’s attention to the lifestyle needs of today’s companies has come to define the firm’s office development strategy. This includes contemporary designs and amenities that more closely convey the ambiance of a boutique luxury hotel than a conventional office building.
“We tend to put more emphasis on design than many of our competitors,” added Halford. “Tenants are more apt to focus on a better product than on price. We learned in Silicon Valley that there are a disproportionate number of firms that want the best product, and we think that expectation is equally prevalent in San Diego.”
Bixby has invested over $400 million in 30 buildings throughout California over the past three years, including creative office developments in Silicon Valley, Los Angeles and Orange County. These most recent acquisitions signal the company’s continuing interest in the San Diego area, a market Bixby knows well from previous investment activity.
