Prentiss Adds 460,000 SF to Lake Merritt Portfolio

OAKLAND, CA-Prentiss Properties has beefed up its presence in the Lake Merritt submarket of the Oakland CBD with the purchase of a 460,000-sf class A office building and a 695-slip parking garage, according to the broker in the transaction, Colliers International. The Dallas-based REIT acquired the 20-year-old 2101 Webster building and the 2353 Webster structured parking garage from an entity controlled by the Charles Pankow estate for slightly more than $64.7 million. The property was 85% leased at close of escrow. Major tenants include Kaiser Health Foundation, Geomatrix Environmental Consultants, SBC Communications, City National Bank, Wells Fargo and Charles Pankow Builders. The purchase pushes Prentiss’ built portfolio in the Lake Merritt submarket to four buildings totaling well over 1.2 million sf. Prentiss is adding to its land bank in the submarket as well, having also signed a contract to acquire 2150 Franklin St., an adjacent development site that can support another 260,000-sf office development. The company says it already has several other development parcels in the submarket, including a 2.5-acre parcel adjacent to its 580,000-sf Lake Merritt Tower I building that is entitled for a 700,000-sf office building. The official seller of the Webster buildings is Webster Street Partners, a limited partnership with a majority interest and control held by the estate of Charles Pankow, who passed away unexpectedly in January. The broker in the deal, Michael Speers, of Colliers East Bay Investment Group, says the purchase solidifies Prentiss’ position as “the dominant player in the Lake Merritt market and puts it on an equal footing with Shorenstein in the overall Oakland class A office market.” In addition to Lake Merritt Tower, Prentiss’ owns in the submarket the 525,000-sf Ordway Building and the 272,100-sf World Savings Center. All three of the buildings were between 95% and 99% leased as of the start of the year.