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Friday, Mar 29, 2024

Historic Calabasas Campus Tries to Rise Again

An internet search of 4500 Park Granada in Calabasas turns up all sorts of interesting things. In its past life, the 20-acre office park served as headquarters for Lockheed Corp. before it merged with Martin Marietta Corp. in the mid-1990s to become the defense giant Lockheed Martin Corp. headquartered in Bethesda, Md. It also served as the corporate home of mortgage lender Countrywide Financial Services, which was bought by Bank of America Corp. in 2008. And, according to a news story, the nearly 233,000-square-foot office building allegedly hides a safe room in its basement intended for late President Ronald Reagan in case of a nuclear attack. Currently, the campus is one of the few remaining properties from a 10-building, $200 million portfolio that L.A. developer Rising Realty Partners bought in 2013 from Bank of America. With the building vacant, Rising has begun a substantial renovation of the campus that boasts extensive open space, old-growth trees, a babbling brook and a walking trail. “When we purchased the building, we saw it as a tremendous opportunity, and with opportunity comes challenge,” said Tyson Strutzenberg, Rising’s chief operating officer. “The environment is really the opportunity.” Rising expects to spend between $5 million and $10 million for the entire project. That includes refurbishing the 14,500-square-foot central outdoor courtyard and replacing the staircase. All work areas will get high-speed Wi-Fi. Inside, Rising is remodeling the main lobby and the 3,000-square-foot fitness center. The 850-square-foot cafĂ© will also be redesigned with quick-purchase fresh foods and beverages, Strutzenberg added. “The size of the project facilitates that,” Strutzenberg said, referring to the cafĂ©. “Once it’s fully leased, there will be enough workers on site to support that type of arrangement.” Leasing the vast space is already underway. Last year, New York-based beauty products company Coty Inc. agreed to take nearly 100,000 square feet. And there has been interest from companies in health and wellness, financial services, technology and manufacturing. “If you can provide a unique and enjoyable environment that people want to be at 10 hours a day, or whatever, then you can attract talent,” Strutzenberg said. Campus Hotel After years of discussion, California State University – Northridge is a lot closer to its goal to get a hotel and a restaurant on campus. About two weeks ago, the university and Chicago hotel developer Jupiter Realty Co. signed a nonbinding letter of intent with the understanding that Jupiter would build a 148-room Hyatt Place business hotel on a 2.75-acre site at the southeast corner of the campus, said Colin Donahue, vice president for administration and finance at the university. As part of the deal, Jupiter will also build a 6,000-square-foot restaurant, replacing the 40-plus-year-old Orange Grove Bistro Restaurant currently on the site. That was of prime importance to the university, Donahue said. “That was one of the strategies – to replace that without using state or auxiliary funds – because it would have been at least $6 million (otherwise),” he said. Jupiter won the competitive proposal process reviewed by a university committee. The estimated cost for the entire project is about $52 million, according to Donahue. Under the public-private partnership, Jupiter will own the hotel and restaurant, finance the entire building process, and once built, pay all taxes and maintain them for 65 years. The university serves as the ground lease holder, so Jupiter will also pay rent to the university, Donahue said, as well as a portion of the hotel’s – but not the restaurant’s – annual net profits. “It incentivizes both parties to support the success of the hotel,” he explained. The Cal State system’s largest university has said it needs a hotel for visiting student recruits, family members, faculty and staff candidates, business partners, artists and sports teams. It will also be open to the public. The project’s next step will be signing an agreement with Jupiter that allows it access to the property and then eventually an initial design agreement. Airport Development Aeroplex/Aerolease Group of Long Beach has completed a $7.5 million development of a 3-acre site at the Van Nuys Airport. The 123,000-square-foot project includes a 38,000-square-foot hangar; 8,500 square feet of shop, office and terminal space with a conference room, kitchen and a lounge; more than 55,000 square feet of new aircraft ramp and staging areas; and private parking for 45-plus vehicles, the company said. Aeroplex/Aerolease Group manages more than 170,000 square feet at the airport. Curt Castagna, chief executive, sits on the Los Angeles County Airport Commission and serves as president of the Van Nuys Airport Association that represents the airport’s major tenants. Staff Reporter Carol Lawrence can be reached at (818) 316-3123 or [email protected].

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