Blindsided. (Real Estate).

Danny King

SeeBeyond Technology Corp. may have been shortsighted when it came to its headquarters relocation needs.

At the end of 2000, the Monrovia-based software producer signed a 10-year deal to lease 80,000 square feet in the Monrovia Technology Campus at Huntington Drive

But as business conditions improved throughout last year, company officials concluded that the space would be insufficient. So last month SeeBeyond signed a 12-year lease for an additional 40,000 square feet at the new location. The lease on the initial 80,000 square feet was extended two years to match the new deal.

Financial terms were not disclosed, but real estate sources in the San Gabriel Valley estimated total consideration in excess of $25 million.

"In their industry, everybody was hiring like mad, then came the cost controls," said CRESA Partners Principal Douglas A. Econn, who along with Gerald Porter represented SeeBeyond in both deals. "But they went profitable for the first time last quarter, and they realized they needed more space:'

SeeBeyond, which went public in April 2000, reported net income of $1.6 million for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, compared with a net loss of $6.2 million in the like year-earlier quarter. Fourth-quarter revenues were $44.1 million, vs. $42.7 million in the fourth quarter of 1999.

Monrovia-based developers Samuelson & Fetter broke ground on the newly built campus after securing SeeBeyond's first lease. The company will be the first tenants at the location; the first two phases of development will total 265,000 square feet when built out.

The SeeBeyond deals reflect a tightening San Gabriel office market, exacerbated by a scarcity of new buildings in the area, said Nico Vilgiate, who leases commercial space in the area. The San Gabriel Valley office vacancy rate was 12 percent in the fourth quarter, down from 16 percent in the like-year earlier quarter, according to Grubb & Ellis.

"Monrovia has done very well with technology-based companies," said Vilgiate, director at Insignia/ESG.

Staff reporter Danny King can be reached at (323) 549-5225 ext. 230, or at dking@labusinessjournal.com.