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| Woolworth Building, 201 North Brand Boulevard, Downtown Glendale, CA |
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| Mark Evanoff |
Los Angeles, CA – Avison
Young, the world’s fastest-growing commercial real estate services firm,
announced today that it has negotiated three new leases totaling 18,649 square
feet (sf) at the newly renovated historic Woolworth
building in the heart of downtown Glendale, CA.
The leases include two
ground-floor restaurant tenants, 85°C Bakery Cafe and The Halal Guys, as well
as shared office workspaces tenant Regus, which occupies the entire second
floor.
Located at 201 North Brand
Boulevard, the 44,000-sf property was originally built in the 1920s and
remodeled in 1942, when it became a Woolworth store. The structure was placed
on the Glendale Register of Historic Resources in 1999.
Avison Young Principal Mark Evanoff, Andrew Berk, a
Vice-President, and Chase Gordon, an
Associate, who are all based in the company’s north Los Angeles office,
represented landlords Gustavo Spoliansky
and Loretta Scherer, partners in Los Angeles-based Bow Truss Capital, LLC.
The three new tenants all
opened their doors this month. 85°C Bakery Cafe is occupying 2,865 sf;
international restaurant chain The Halal Guys is occupying 2,284 sf, and Regus
is occupying the entire 13,750-sf second floor, bringing energy to the project
by providing space for tech, fashion and entertainment office users. The
newcomers join existing tenant AT&T, which occupies 3,500 sf.
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| Andrew Berk |
Eighteen months ago, the
Avison Young team began work with its clients, who acquired the nearly
44,000-sf property out of receivership in 2014. It was 89% vacant and
functionally obsolete due to its inefficient floor plan, outdated systems, and
years of deferred maintenance. It had also lost its anchor tenant.
Once Bow Truss Capital
solidified its comprehensive renovation strategy and design plans while at the
same time preserving the asset’s historical character and architectural
features, the Avison Young team created a marketing plan to attract tenants to
the unique space.
“The Glendale retail
market has a significant amount of newer competitive product,” comments Gordon.
“Our goal was to communicate the building’s new vision and prelease a large
majority of the ground-floor retail space and second-floor office space to
tenants within a compressed timeline.”
The Avison Young team
worked to redefine the Woolworth building’s perception to potential tenants and
create excitement by reintroducing it to the market as a unique mixed‐use project with character, functionality and energy. A number of offers
from a diversity of prospective tenants
were secured, enabling Bow Truss to select the best mix.
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| Chase Gordon |
“Bow Truss worked closely
with the Glendale Historical Preservation Committee to undergo approvals for
the façade renovation,” says Spoliansky.
“Simultaneously to the exterior
renovation, the Avison Young team diligently worked to communicate the
building’s transformation to potential users, generated significant interest,
and negotiated three leases.
"Once those were signed, the major undertaking of
tenant improvements as well as the complex installation of modern building
systems to support the users was executed.”
He adds: “I am pleased to
say that, as a result of this challenging undertaking, we have successfully
delivered a vibrant, historically significant and quality asset complete with
tenants that are meeting the demands of the community.”
The building’s
transformation included new windowed retail frontage, brand new building
systems, and renovation and refurbishment of its unique historical architectural
features. The remaining 5,200-sf ground-floor retail space, in addition to
basement and mezzanine office space totaling approximately 16,000 sf, has seen
a considerable amount of interest from other potential users.
“Glendale is fast-becoming
one of the premier live-work-play destinations in Greater Los Angeles, and the
Woolworth building project exemplifies this shift perfectly with its
neighborhood-serving retail and main-street feel,” notes Berk.
The Woolworth building,
which is located at a key intersection in the Theatre District of downtown
Glendale, is within a growing residential population of 225,000 people over a
three-mile radius and a massive daytime employee population.
The area is set to
gentrify in the coming months and years, as nearly 3,300 new residential units
have recently been completed or are soon coming to the market.
The asset is also within a destination retail
scene that includes nearby Tender Greens, Chipotle, Nordstrom, Bloomingdale’s
The Americana at Brand and hundreds of other high-end amenities along Brand
Blvd.
For a complete copy of the company’s news release,
please contact:
Darcie Giacchetto
949.278.6224
