$1B Bay Area Life Science Campus Gets $373M Loan

Lane Partners and Goldman Sachs have secured $373M in financing for the construction of the first phase of Southline, a 3M SF mixed-use life science campus the company is developing in South San Francisco.

Square Mile Capital Management originated the recapitalization package for the first phase, encompassing 715K SF, with Bank OZK providing the senior portion of the loan in a transaction arranged by Eastdil Secured.

In announcing the recapitalization of Southline Phase I, the partners also disclosed that Beacon Capital Partners has joined the ownership group for the initial phase of the transit-oriented development.

Phase I, which will involve the construction of two buildings, one of which will be a stand-alone building containing amenities including a fitness center, restaurant and café, as well as a parking garage. A six-story building with lab and office space also will be part of the first phase.

Ground was broken at last fall at the $1B project, and the first buildings on the campus are scheduled to open at the end of next year.

Goldman Sachs and Lane purchased the parcels that make up the Southline project in 2017. The development is located on a 29-acre site at 30 Tanforan Ave., within walking distance of the San Bruno stations of the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) and Caltrain transit lines.

Southline eventually will include seven six-story buildings with floorplates ranging from 45K to 100K SF. The campus also will include seven acres of open space and a beer garden.

According to its website, Southline’s design palette of terracotta and glass echoes the area’s industrial history while open greenways and wide paths invite residents and visitors to walk to the nearby amenities.

The site is across the street from the San Bruno BART Station and the Shops at Tanforan mall. It’s also less than two miles from Youtube’s headquarters.

Although South San Francisco refers to itself as “the industrial city,” it reigns as one of the nation’s largest biotech hubs with more than 11.5 million square feet of space housing more than 200 companies. On top of that, more than 5 million square feet of life science space is under construction or ready to start construction.

Most of the biotech space is clustered east of Highway 101 near the bayfront. Southline site is west of Highway 101.

The project is one of 13 developments that Lane Partners is working on. The company’s portfolio stretches from more than 1 million square feet of office in Oakland to several developments in Silicon Valley.