Essex to manage 895,000 square feet in Ontario

COMMERCIAL

Costa Mesa-based Essex Realty Management Inc. has been selected by A&B Properties to manage that firm's 895,000-squarefoot Ontario Distribution Center complex in the Inland Empire.

The contract, one of the largest awarded to an Orange County firm this year, just about

A&B Properties recently acquired the Ontario Distribution Center from Prudential Real Estate Advisors.

The contract brings Essex's total property management portfolio to 6.2 million square feet.

Irvine Company Lowers Sights

The Irvine Company has no plans to add to its portfolio of high-rise office space for the next five years, according to Richard Sim, group president of the giant landowner's commercial properties.

According to Art Barrett, editor of Martin Brower's Orange County Report, Sim said there are no new high-rises in his fiveyear plan. Sim cited a couple of reasons for this surprising revelation:

* It takes roughly three years from the start of planning to completion of the building, a timeline that is too broad considering how rapidly market conditions in Orange County can change.

* A new building would have to fetch $2.75 per square foot to make financial sense, and while there are pockets in Orange County that are commanding those rates, the current spate of high-rise construction and the additional new space these projects will bring to market makes it difficult to command those rates over the long term. (Ironically, one of the pockets of Orange County that is fetching more than $2.75 per square foot is the Irvine Co.'s Newport Center office complex in Newport Beach, where the developer says it will never build another high-rise, according to Barrett. According to reports, the ring of high-rise complexes has commanded as much as $4 per square foot for some of that space.)

* Increasingly, tenants-especially dot-- coms and other tech firms-are shying away from high-rise space in favor of campus complexes similar to Parker Properties' The Summit Office Campus in Aliso Viejo and the Irvine Co.'s University Research Park.

LeadersOnline Signs Lease

Despite the doom and gloom atmosphere surrounding a lot of dot-com firms-and landlords' growing wariness of these firms-- some. still see them as attractive tenants.

Cornerstone Development Partners Inc. is apparently one of those landlords. The Laguna Niguel-based company recently signed LeadersOnline Inc., an Internet-based executive-search firm, to a five-year, $2.5 million lease for 24,551 square feet of space at its two-story building in Aliso Viejo.

The building, at 135 Columbia, will house LeadersOnline's corporate headquarters beginning in January, when the subsidiary of Heidrick & Struggles International Inc. moves out of its current space in Irvine.

Doug Mathews and Gary Allen of Grubb & Ellis' Newport Beach office represented Cornerstone. Jeff Osborn and John Gallivan of Cushman Realty represented LeadersOnline.

RESIDENTIAL

Newport Beach homes starting from $100?

It isn't quite what you'd expect, but it's true. Given the rapid escalation of home prices in Orange County, the folks -over at the Four Seasons Hotel in Newport Beach are stepping in with a home sales program starting from $100. The homes, meticulously decorated and designed, will be constructed using only the finest materials: sugar, flour, eggs and candy.

That's right, they're gingerbread houses. Four Seasons Hotel Executive Chef Michel Pieton and Pastry Chef Sheldon Millet last week sold the tasty homes as part of their Gingerbread Village Wonderland event, a fundraiser for Toys for Tots, which provides toys to underprivileged children during the holiday season.

Besides the homes, Gingerbread Village Wonderland featured buildings, bridges and streets.

Whittlesey Doyle Gets Chapman Heights

Local land brokerage firm Whittlesey Doyle Inc. has been tapped by developer Communities Southwest to take over marketing of the company's 2, 100-unit Chapman Heights masterplanned community in Yucaipa.

Irvine-based Whittlesey Doyle replaces another local firm, Costa Mesa-based O'Donnell/Atkins Co., as the lead marketing and land brokerage company on the project. Four land deals have been completed at the masterplanned golf-course community, two of which were brokered by Les Whittlesey, a principal with Whittlesey Doyle.

Anaheim-based Communities Southwest also selected Whittlesey Doyle to oversee marketing of its Crowne Hill masterplanned community in Temecula. That community, consisting of roughly 800 approved units, will be handled by Tom Doyle, the other principal of the firm. Richmond American Homes already has purchased an undisclosed number of lots in that community.

SALES

Foremost Business Park bought a 134,518square-foot industrial business park at 4875 E. La Palma in Anaheim from Catellus Commercial Group for $10.1 million. Al Pekarcik of Voit Commercial Brokerage represented Foremost. Bob Griffith and Jeff Chiate of Cushman & Wakefield represented Catellus Commercial Group.

Yatsu Musen USA purchased 8 acres on Walker Street in Cypress from Layton Betting & Associates for $6 million. Junko Masubayashi of NAI Capital represented Yatsu Musen. Brian DeRevere, Bob Goodmanson and Brad Bierbaum of CB Richard Ellis represented LBA.

Pacific Shoe Corp. bought a 57,800-square-- foot facility at 5951 Skylab Road in Huntington Beach from Master Development for $4.6 million. Kevin Turner of Seeley Co. represented Pacific Shoe. Brad Bierbaum, Brian DeRevere and Bob Goodmanson of CB Richard Ellis represented Master Development.

Precision Offset acquired a 24,824-squarefoot industrial building at 17422 Murphy Ave. in Irvine from Viking Pumps of Southern California for $2.4 million. Scott Read of Grubb & Ellis' Newport Beach office represented both parties.

Charlotte Lin bought a 23,828-square-foot industrial building in Ontario from First American Exchange Corp. for $1.4 million. Tom Gilmer of Lee & Associates-Orange Inc. represented Lin. Walt Arrington of CB Richard Ellis represented First American.

Bixby Land Co. purchased a 150,000square-foot office property at 26110-26160 Enterprise Way in Lake Forest from Morgan Stanley and Gale & Wentworth for $26 million. Robert Griffith of Cushman & Wakefield's Irvine office represented both parties. Steve Silk and Jay Borzi, formerly with Cushman & Wakefield, were on the disposition team.

Marble Express Inc. acquired 2.395 acres in the Anaheim Technology Center in Anaheim from AG/Touchstone-HP Anaheim LLC for $1.4 million. Michael Finley and Troy Williams of Grubb & Elis' Anaheim office represented Marble Express. AG/Touchstone-HP Anaheim represented itself.

Irvine-based Linkletter Enterprises bought 1.57 acres in Long Beach from Southdown Concrete Products Inc. for $0.7 million. Steve Sprenger and LR Sanders of Grubb & Ellis' Anaheim office and John Hollingworth of Grubb & Ellis represented both parties.

USF Reddaway Truck Lines Inc. purchased a 32,500-square-foot industrial building at 300 S. State College Blvd. in Fullerton for $2.8 million. Steve Sprenger of Grubb & Ellis' Anaheim office and Jim Kemmerer of Burr & Temkin represented USF Reddaway. Jack Faris of Voit Commercial Brokerage represented the seller.

Severson & Smith bought a 10.78-acre land parcel in Rancho Santa Margarita from Rancho Santa Margarita for $3.8 million. Tom Gilmer of Lee & Associates-Orange represented Severson & Smith. Tyler Mattox of CB Richard Ellis represented Rancho Santa Margarita.

PCF Investments purchased a 51,000-squarefoot retail space in Torrance from North Point Center Inc. for $4.6 million. John Pentz of Pentz & Partners in Newport Beach represented PCF. John Moss of Lee & Associates Irvine Spectrum office represented North Point Center.

Wells Fargo acquired an 83,131-square-foot office building at 2525 N. Main St. in Santa Ana from J.P. Morgan Investment Inc. for $10.4 million. John Speiza represented Wells Fargo. Robert Griffith of Cushman & Wakefield represented J.P. Morgan Investment Inc.

Johnson Manufacturing bought a 12,094square-foot building at 15201 Connector Lane in Huntington Beach from Robert McNeal for $1 million. Mike Bouma of Voit Commercial Brokerage's Anaheim Metro office represented Johnson Manufacturing. Grubb & Ellis represented Robert McNeal.

F.J. Hanshaw bought the 10,685-square-foot Goldenwest Plaza at 13672 Goldenwest St. in Westminster from Forum Capital Management LLC. Damon Wyler and Scott Hook of Marcus & Millichap represented the seller.

A & J Palmdale I. LP purchased the 28,000square-foot California Center in Palmdale from TR Brell California Center Corp. Mark Lucescu, Gregory Brown and Edward Hanley of Marcus & Millichap represented TR Brell.

Wilson Trust bought a 25,038-square-foot industrial building at 17391 Murphy Ave. in Irvine from MacDuff LP. Michael Lawrence of Marcus & Millichap represented Wilson Trust.

BJP Properties Inc. acquired the 109-room Lyn War Motel in Gardena from Epstein Properties for $2.4 million. Park Weaver of Marcus & Millichap represented Epstein Properties.

Tom Cole sold the 25-unit Governor Apartments in Whittier for $1.2 million. Mike Marcu of Marcus & Millichap represented Tom Cole.

Zaki Family Trust purchased the 7.000square-foot Kragen Auto Building in Los Angeles from CSK Auto for $1.6 million. Gregory Brown and Edward Hanley of Marcus & Millichap Brown and Edward they of trust.

LEASES

Millichap represented the trust. LEASES

ATEN International Co. Ltd. subleased a 25,000-square-foot industrial building in Irvine Spectrum from Smile International Inc. The 56-month sublease was valued at $1.1 million. JR Williamson of Nathan Howard Group represented ATEN International Co. Ltd. Darren Reul and John Goehle of Grubb & Ellis' Newport Beach office represented Smile International Inc.

H & H Metal Fabrication leased a 31,000square-foot industrial building at 726 W. Nicolas in Orange from Jean L. Sommerfield for $1.1 million. Steve Crane of Lee & Associates-Orange represented H & H Metal Fabrication. Chris Migliori of Daum Commercial represented Sommerfield.

Fujitsu Business Communication Systems Inc. leased 147,250 square feet at Irvine Spectrum from The Irvine Company. Jeff Chiate and Bob Griffith of Cushman & Wakefield represented Fujitsu. The Irvine Co. represented itself.