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Thursday, Mar 28, 2024

Housewares Wholesaler Picks Up Former Bugle Boy Site

An interesting deal went down in Simi Valley recently. A 208,493-square-foot industrial property owned by Bank of America was sold to Kingsbridge International, Inc., an importer / wholesaler of housewares and giftwares. The transaction is valued at $11.42 million. John DeGrinis of Colliers International represented Kingsbridge International, Inc. along with Patrick DuRoss, senior associate, and Jeff Abraham from Collier’s Encino office. Bank of America was represented by Cushman & Wakefield. DeGrinis said the two-building property, comprised of a 135,683-square-foot distribution building and a 72,810-square-foot office building was once the long-time headquarters of now defunct Bugle Boy Jeans and was later sold to Countrywide Financial. Bank of America, which acquired Countrywide, was using the office building for its operations but had been trying to figure out what to do with the rest of the space. As part of the transaction, Kingsbridge International bought the entire property and leased the office building back to Bank of America for a two-year term. “This allowed the buyer to also deploy capital in a real estate opportunity,” said DeGrinis. The last transaction of similar size that took place in Simi Valley was a 201,812 square foot facility at 2280 Ward Ave. that sold for $69.37 per square foot last December, said DeGrinis. This property owned by Bank of America sold for $54.77 per square foot in August. It would have probably sold for well into the hundreds per square foot at the peak of the real estate market boom back in 2006. “Kingsbridge was attracted to this property because the quality of the real estate and the price point were incredibly attractive,” DeGrinis said. Kingsbridge will operate its business from the 135,683-square-foot distribution building, which according to DeGrinis was built by Bugle Boy Jeans and features upper echelon type of improvements. Kingsbridge will be relocating to this location at 2900-2950 Madera Rd in Simi Valley from their Chatsworth headquarters. This deal is also indicative that prices are continuing to drop, said DeGrinis. “I clearly do not think we have reached bottom. This is like a tide and the tide is dropping and it’s affecting everybody.” Grand Opening Empire Landing, the first major rental housing complex built in Burbank in the last quarter century, officially opened September 21 with a ceremony that included Burbank Mayor Anja Reinke and Alan Casden, CEO of Casden Properties LLC The 276 luxury rental home community set on seven landscaped acres in the heart of Burbank’s entertainment and media district, opened with 40 percent of its residences leased. According to Casden, there is a great need for new luxury residences in the area and Empire Landing helps fill that gap. He noted that the last major rental home community completed in Burbank was The Promenade built by Casden Properties in 1985. Mayor Reinke said the project is contributing significantly to housing in Burbank and she also appreciated the efforts made by Casden Properties to reduce traffic impacts. The project is located at the corner of Buena Vista Street and Empire Avenue, within walking distance of the Bob Hope Airport Metrolink station. It was designed by Johannes Van Tilburg, FAIA, of Van Tilburg, Banvard & Soderbergh. Starting prices range from $2,200 for a one-bedroom apartment, $2,800 for two bedrooms and $3,400 for townhomes. Agoura Hills Colliers International directed the sale of two office buildings totaling 24,838 square feet in Agoura Hills for a combined $4.1 million. In the first transaction, Agoura Hills-based Aspen Environmental Group, an environmental consulting firm, purchased a 14,000-square-foot office building located at 5020 Chesebro Rd., Bldg. 8 in Agoura Hills for $2.3 million. The property was recently foreclosed on and was bank owned at the time of the sale. Jeff Albee, senior vice president, and Jeff Gould, senior associate, both in Colliers’ Encino office, represented the buyer in the transaction. The seller WA Real Estate LLC, was represented by Andrew Harper and Michael Ross of Grubb & Ellis. In the second transaction, Woodlands Hills-based Global Marketing Partners, a distributor and incubator of emerging technology vendors, purchased a 10,838-square-foot office building located at 28038 Dorothy Dr. in Agoura Hills for $1.8 million. Albee and Gould, along with Chris Itule, senior associate in Colliers’ Encino office, represented the seller, Robert Meyerson Co. Trust, in the transaction. The buyer was represented by Rick Dearson of Cresa Partners. A key driver for the buyers of both properties was the available financing from the Small Business Administration (SBA), according to Gould. Each of the buyers secured 90 percent financing with low interest rates from the SBA. Hollywood Ties Hollywood scribe Don Scott, writer behind the Barbershop movies, recently signed a 10-year lease for a 1,060 square foot space in North Hollywood. Eli Shtrum of Illi Commercial Real Estate, an Encino based commercial real estate leasing and management firm, represented the landlord in the transaction. Shtrum said Scott plans to open a high-end southern style gourmet hot dog restaurant at the location at 5166 Lankershim Blvd. Total lease consideration was $386,197. Shtrum also represented the landlord in a separate transaction in which 20th Century Fox Television entered into a new lease at the Dick Clark building in Burbank. 20th Century Fox Television leased approximately 7,000 square feet at the building at 3003 W. Olive. The lease consideration was $16,450 per month. More Transactions Hobbytron.com, retailers of remote control boats, helicopters, airplanes, cars, trucks and other toys, leased a 93,221 square foot industrial building in Valencia for a two-fold expansion of its headquarters and distribution center. Peter Steigleder, vice president of Van Nuys -based Delphi Business Properties, along with David Hoffberg, and Jerry Scullin, represented Hobbytron.com. Craig Peters and Doug Sonderegger of CB Richard Ellis represented Lincoln Industrial Center II, the landlord. The company is relocating from 40,000 square feet of space in San Fernando, and will employ 32 people at the new site. The three-year lease is valued in excess of $1.5 million. The new headquarters for Hobbytron.com feature a concrete tilt-up structure with 23,078 square feet of office space, 24-foot minimum interior clearance, 16 loading docks, three loading doors, and on-site parking for 176 cars. “The Hobbytron.com lease underscores that businesses are looking to take advantage of rental rates that are substantially below rates of two and a half years ago,” said Steigleder. “This business mindset is currently driving the market and illustrates the willingness of companies to expand despite the economic uncertainty.” Multi Family Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, represented the seller in the purchase of Sonoma Gardens, a 74-unit apartment building located in Sherman Oaks. The asset commanded a sales price of $9.4 million. Greg Harris, an executive vice president investments and senior director of Marcus & Millichap’s National Multi Housing Group in Encino, represented the seller, a limited liability company. The buyer, a partnership, was represented by Matt Ziegler in the firm’s Encino office, and senior associate Mike Millea, in the Long Beach office. Danny Abergel, an associate director in the Encino office of Marcus & Millichap Capital Corporation (MMCC), arranged acquisition financing for this transaction. Sonoma Gardens is located at 14355 Huston St. Rick Raymundo and Philip Rodgers of Marcus & Millichap along with the firm’s Tax Credit Group in Seattle, completed the sale of a 44-unit apartment property in the Westlake Village. The sales price of $3,375,000 represents a value of $76,705 per unit. Raymundo, Vice President of Investments in the Downtown Los Angeles office of Marcus & Millichap and a Director of the firm’s National Multi-Housing Group, represented both the Buyer and Seller in this transaction. Located at 1562 West 4th Street, the 44-unit apartment complex is situated on a .29 acre lot. Staff Reporter Andrea Alegria can be reached at (818) 316-3124 or at [email protected].

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