The class A office project is rising at Birtcher's 1.3-million-sf AmberGlen Business Center located just west of NW 185th on Cornell Road. Including roadway extensions, Birtcher says it is spending $12 million on the project. Ankrom Moisan is the architect. Perlo McCormack Pacific is the general contractor.
Planar is consolidating office personnel currently located in a few different buildings inside and just outside the park. Much of the personnel are currently housed in an aging class B building the company owns in the former Oregon Graduate Center Science Park adjacent to AmberGlen.
In addition to the science park building it owns, Planar leases manufacturing and office space in the so-called 1100 and 1400 buildings, and some of its leases don't run out for another two years or so, said Jim Edwards, a locally based senior vice president with Birtcher, at the time the lease deal was signed.
There is no definitive word yet on what Planar will do with the extra space once it moves into the new building next summer, but at the time the lease was signed Greg Hume, president of Hume Myers Tenant Counsel and Planar's broker in the deal, told GlobeSt.com that "what drove the deal is their existing commitment to other manufacturing and office space at the park."
Planar's investor relations person Stewart Clark told GlobeSt.com in early September that the move is being made for several reasons, three of which are image, cost and control. The company prides itself in paying well for hard workers, he says, and wants that image to be reflected in its office space. To upgrade the science park building to reflect that image, however, would have been more expensive than moving one-quarter of a mile into the new space, says Clark. Finally, because it's a build-to-suit deal, Clark says Planar will be able to control how the building is finished out such that it specifically fits the company's needs.
At the end of the trading day Friday, shares of Planar stood at $20.03, off $0.99 on the day. Planar's share price had been consistently on the rise since falling from $25 to $18 during January. On Feb. 13, AG Edwards initiated coverage on the company with a "strong buy" rating.
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