THOUSAND OAKS, CALIF. — CBRE has arranged the sale of a 98,776-square-foot office building in Thousand Oaks for $17.7 million. The firm also arranged $42 million in financing for the acquisition and speculative conversion to a life sciences campus.
Located at 120 Via Merida and built in 1998, the two-story office building sits on 6.7 acres and was previously the corporate headquarters for Wellpoint Health Networks. The property’s existing infrastructure is well suited to be redeveloped for life sciences use, according to CBRE. It features 50,000-square-foot floor plates, steel frame construction, outdoor balconies, grade-high dock door and ample power supply.
Gray Matter, the life sciences initiative of Graymark Capital, has engaged architect BAM Creative to develop a phased conversion plan. Upon completion, the property will feature 60 percent lab-ready space with upgraded mechanical, electrical and plumbing, and 40 percent newly built creative office space to support the lab. The property will also undergo exterior and site improvements to the power system, loading area, indoor/outdoor amenity areas, cosmetics, roof and parking lot.
CBRE’s Mike Longo, Sean Sullivan and Todd Tydlaska represented the seller, a Los Angeles-based private equity firm, in the sale. CBRE’s Greg Grant arranged financing on behalf of the buyer, San Francisco-based Graymark Capital. The 60 percent loan-to-cost, interest-only loan was placed with a life insurance company on a non-recourse basis. Most of the loan will be used for the conversion.