PRESS RELEASES

Equastone Enters the Silicon Valley Office Market With First Acquisition

San Diego, CA – Equastone announced its first acquisition in the Silicon Valley office/R&D market with the purchase of 1331 California Circle, a single-story Class B building totaling 100,041 square feet. The seller, South Bay Development, was represented by Ken Candelaria and Justin Reilly from CPS. Equastone was represented by Jere Hench and Romy Zeid from Wayne Mascia & Associates.

Located in the northeast corner of Santa Clara County in Milpitas, California, 1331 California Circle is situated on 6.34 acres between I-880 and I-680 with freeway frontage along I-880. The location is attractive for tenants because it can pull a high quality workforce from Santa Clara, the Peninsula and the East Bay. Due to higher density development initiatives in Milpitas and North San Jose, the building is part of a dwindling supply of affordable quality office and R&D space.

Current economic trends show that this region is experiencing significant employment growth which will lead to an increased demand for commercial space. Specifically, the Silicon Valley R&D market has posted positive net absorption for twelve out of the past thirteen quarters. Since current construction costs and land values do not yet justify new construction, the growing demand will lead to greater competition for the existing inventory of commercial space.

Equastone’s Vice President of Acquisitions Chris Stai said, “With the purchase of California Circle, Equastone has now established a presence in the recovering Silicon Valley commercial real estate market. As existing space leases up, there will be lower vacancy which will create upward pressure on rental rates. And since there is substantial room for market rents to grow before rents can justify new construction, we believe existing properties will only become more valuable. Equastone will capitalize on these trends by accelerating our Bay Area acquisition program to assemble a portfolio of quality R&D, office and industrial buildings.”

To upgrade the property, California Circle will receive a complete cosmetic remodel. Equastone will makeover the exterior of the building enhancing its curb appeal and improving freeway visibility. As part of this makeover, multiple entrances will be provided to transform the building from a single-tenant property to a flexible design that can accommodate different tenants with varying space needs.

According to Ron Lack, Equastone’s Executive Vice President who oversees the management of all of the company’s assets in the western states, “These improvements will create multiple leasing options for California Circle as the property will be attractive to a wider variety of tenants seeking competitively priced office space that offers an upscale corporate identity.”

About Equastone
Equastone currently owns 46 office buildings encompassing more than 6.4 million square feet throughout the United States and intends to acquire $1 billion of new investments this year. Equastone and its affiliates currently have offices in San Diego, Denver and Houston, and own properties in California, Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Louisiana, Nevada, Oregon and Texas. California, Oregon and Washington investment offerings should be directed to Chris Stai at cstai@equastone.com. All other investment offerings should be directed to Jeff Schindler at jschindler@equastone.com.

Equastone is a real estate investment firm specializing in the acquisition and asset management of opportunistic and value-added real estate. Equastone manages investment capital on behalf of Equastone Real Estate Funds, which are private equity funds for high net-worth and institutional investors. For more information about Equastone, call Mykel Sprinkles at (858) 812-3261 or visit www.equastone.com.

top | back to press releases