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TUSTIN, CA—Bixby Land Co.'s 33.7 North project here will take an obsolete industrial building and transform it into creative-office space with a mezzanine component that's uncommon Orange County, the firm's CEO Bill Halford tells GlobeSt.com. The 96,000-square-foot project with 16,000-square-foot exposed steel-frame structured mezzanine will be available for occupancy in the fourth quarter of this year. We spoke exclusively with Halford about the project and the different terms being used for modern-day office product.
GlobeSt.com: What makes your 33.7 North project special?
Halford: It was previously known as a sort of industrial building, and yet it had a lot of parking, so we bought it vacant, and we're repurposing it to a creative-office project. We're using an architect out of Los Angeles that's done many warehouse and historic conversions, so we're pretty excited about what it will be. There's nothing similar to it in Orange County. The original building was probably built in the '60s—it's not historic, but it was previously occupied by an industrial tenant. It will have a high-bay component and will have mezzanine office space in it, which is somewhat common in L.A., but I don't think it's been done in Orange County. Our estimate is we'll spend about $12 million in construction costs.
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GlobeSt.com: How does this project fit in with office trends in Orange County?
Halford: We're taking a high-clear warehouse and building it out as office space. The majority of the space is open to 20 ft., but with a mezzanine component that's like a second-story office space within the building. We're adding a significant skylight to bring light into the building. In Santa Monica, Venice and the West side of L.A., this is a pretty common occurrence, but we just don't have office buildings in Orange County, for the most part, that are in locations that would support this kind of use.
GlobeSt.com: What types of tenant are you hoping to attract?
Halford: We're targeting single tenants, but it's not industry specific—somebody who is looking for their office space to be a significant statement about their brand in an environment that's unique and helps them recruit and retain employees.
GlobeSt.com: Do you embrace the term “next generation” when it comes to Orange County office space?
Halford: Everybody hates the term creative office because it doesn't really mean anything; it's widely used and abused. Everybody's searching for a way to describe products other than creative office. Irvine Co. uses “next generation”; we use “progressive space.” It's an attempt to distinguish from lesser product that's called “creative.” Any guy with a building in a poor location who paints the door green can call it creative office, so those of us with integrity are trying to get away from it.
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Carrie Rossenfeld
Carrie Rossenfeld is a reporter for the San Diego and Orange County markets on GlobeSt.com and a contributor to Real Estate Forum. She was a trade-magazine and newsletter editor in New York City before moving to Southern California to become a freelance writer and editor for magazines, books and websites. Rossenfeld has written extensively on topics including commercial real estate, running a medical practice, intellectual-property licensing and giftware. She has edited books about profiting from real estate and has ghostwritten a book about starting a home-based business.
