The three-building warehouse and distribution complex stands in the 16000 block of East Gale Avenue, about five miles east of Downtown, and was sold by Pacific Gulf Properties Liquidating Trust. The trust was formed several months ago to help Newport Beach-based REIT Pacific Gulf Properties officially "and voluntarily" go out of business.

While executives at several real estate investment trusts across the US have recently been blasted by analysts and shareholders alike for failing to sell their properties as the market appeared to peak, Pacific Gulf's management decided more than a year ago to begin liquidating most of the company's holdings in an effort to create more value for its stockholders.

Pacific Gulf's decision to sell its portfolio stands in stark contrast to a fellow REIT in neighboring San Diego, Burnham Pacific Properties Inc. About the same time that Pac Gulf's board voted in October 2000 to begin selling the company's holdings to maximize shareholder value, Burnham Pacific's board rejected a $13.50-a-share offer from Ohio-based investor Jay Schottenstein by dismissing the offer as "too low."