Atara Biotherapeutics Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company headquartered in South San Francisco, will move its research and development division to Thousand Oaks by the end of the year, according to the Conejo Valley city. The company’s facility is currently in Westlake Village, but it has signed a 15-year lease for nearly 91,000 square feet in a building yet to be constructed within the Conejo Spectrum Business Park on Conejo Spectrum Street, which lays between Rancho Conejo Boulevard and Conejo Center Drive. According to a federal filing, Atara will pay $74,422 a month for the first year, and the per-month amount will increase annually. Lease terms include an option to renew for 10 years and then nine years after that. Atara will operate at 2430 Conejo Spectrum St. in one of nine new industrial buildings that will be built on the property. Irvine investment and development firm Sares Regis Group and a financial partner bought the 29-acre parcel in a deal announced in January for an undisclosed price. Colliers International brokered the sale. Sares Regis plans to build a total of 500,000 square feet in warehouses that will range from 37,000 square feet to 100,000 square feet. The structures will feature 28- to 30-foot clear height ceilings, numerous dock-high loading doors, office space, high-performance sprinkler systems and fenced yards. Atara’s current research and development facility is on Park Terrace Drive in Westlake Village. According to federal filings, that lease expires in April 2019. Thousand Oaks Mayor Claudia Bill-de la Peña said in a statement to the Business Journal that Atara plans to hire 50 people this year. Atara did not respond to requests for comments in time for publication. “Atara’s move is an example of how the city of Thousand Oaks is continuing to strengthen its reputation as a biotech and biomed hub,” she said. Atara Biotherapeutics was founded in August 2012, according to its website, and develops cellular therapies to treat severe and life-threatening diseases.
