Volkswagen Group of America Inc. is moving a design center into the new Oxnard Engineering Campus in Ventura County. Volkswagen, which had long occupied 10,000 square feet in Santa Monica, will now take all of the more than 150,000 square feet at the industrial park developed by BLT Enterprises. The campus, situated on nine acres in Oxnard, will be home to the Volkswagen Test Center California as well as both the Audi Engineering and Volkswagen Quality teams. The industrial park will also serve as headquarters for Volkswagen’s Design Center California, which has relocated from Santa Monica. BLT, which had been Volkswagen’s landlord in Santa Monica, overhauled a 90,000-square-foot property to create the new Oxnard Engineering Campus. Downtown Los Angeles design firm Gensler created the lobby and office interiors, training and meeting areas, restrooms, stairs, large workshops equipped with lifts, tire service capabilities, alignment racks and electric vehicle charging stations. Exterior renovations include the installation of new roll-up doors, fresh paint, landscaping, roofing and updates to the parking lot. Site amenities include car wash systems, with additional electric car charging stations soon to be installed. The expansion and upgrades were made possible in part due to the ongoing relationship between Volkswagen and BLT, which is also based in Santa Monica. “Our work with Volkswagen Group of America exemplifies BLT’s ‘lifetime landlord’ strategy and mission to adjust to the needs of the companies that lease from us over the long term,” Bernard Huberman, founder and president of BLT Enterprises, said in a statement. “In our role, we strive to help tenants of all sizes expand, move, scale back, and remain nimble as necessary for their business operations – we understand that their successes are our successes.” Lisa Tamayo, vice president of development at BLT, added that the idea for this endeavor began in 2016. “Through communicating this vision to our tenant and completing strategic improvements to the facility, we were able to assist in delivering a customized, cutting-edge space to fit Volkswagen Group of America’s precise needs and reflect its unique culture,” Tamayo said. “This project was a testament to BLT’s commitment to not only form solid landlord-tenant relationships, but to also act as a true, solutions-oriented partner.” Founded in 1984, BLT Enterprises has developed or acquired more than $2 billion in assets to date.
