$28M Deal Expands Dr. Lee's Holdings

UNIVERSAL CITY, CA-Dr. David Lee’s Jamison Properties has purchased a 137,000-sf office building as the largest office landlord in the Mid-Wilshire district continues his expansion into other markets. Manfred Schaub of the Downtown Los Angeles office of Cushman & Wakefield reports that Lee has acquired the Centrum building from EP Investments of Sherman Oaks for $28 million. Schaub represented the seller in Jamison’s acquisition of the six-story red brick and glass building, located at 3575 W. Cahuenga Blvd. The purchase follows Lee’s earlier expansion into other office markets, Schaub points out, noting that Jamison Properties in the past year has acquired office buildings in Downtown Los Angeles, Long Beach, the Westside and the San Fernando Valley. One of the largest commercial office landlords in Southern California, Jamison Properties has a portfolio of more than 60 buildings with a market capitalization in excess of $1 billion. According to figures provided by Jamison and by others familiar with Jamison’s holdings, the company now is the largest owner of office space in Los Angeles County, as reported earlier this year on GlobeSt.com. Lee’s company owns approximately 12 million sf of office space, compared with slightly more than 11 million sf for the second-largest owner of office space in the county, Arden Realty Inc. Arden remains the largest owner of office space in Southern California, with approximately 19 million sf in its portfolio.The Centrum is one of the most visible buildings on the Ventura Boulevard corridor. Located on the south side of the 101 Freeway across from Universal Studios, the building is distinguished by its angular glass architecture on the upper floors. The building is 85%occupied, primarily by entertainment industry firms. Jamison Properties represented itself in the purchase of the property. Lee’s privately held company began buying office buildings in 1995, concentrating on the Mid-Wilshire area, and by 2001 Lee was reported to own about seven million sf in the Mid-Wilshire and Miracle Mile districts of the city. Since then, he has acquired properties in other county office markets and has added to his Mid-Wilshire holdings as well.