AEG to Sell Last Staples Center Parcel

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LNR Property Corp. has struck a deal to buy the last developable property next to Staples Center.


The Miami-based commercial builder has agreed to pay about $80 million to Anschutz Entertainment Group for the 4-acre parcel bounded by Figueroa, Flower, 11th and 12th streets, according to sources close to the deal.


LNR Property wants to build three condominium towers with an undetermined number of units and a 250,000-square-foot retail center. The site is sandwiched between the arena and Flower Street Lofts.


Sources said the privately-held company may form a joint venture to build the condos with publicly held homebuilder Lennar Corp. LNR Property was spun out of Lennar Corp. eight years ago; the two teamed to buy Newhall Land and Farming Co. in 2003 for $990 million.


The transaction with AEG is expected to close this summer. However, the deal still has some unresolved sticking points. While AEG already has entitlements for the land, LNR Property may require city approval for additional housing to make the proposed deal pencil out.


The area has experienced explosive growth in for-sale housing. Without the extra entitlements the deal could still fall apart, the sources said.


AEG, the majority owner of the Staples Center, has been planning a more than $1 billion entertainment-and-retail complex surrounding the arena. The district would include a 1,200-room hotel, a 7,000-seat live theater, radio and television broadcast studios, a large nightclub and several restaurants.


As part of the district, approved by the city council in 2001, AEG also received entitlements for more than 2,000 units of rental and for-sale housing. If the sale to LNR Property goes through, those approvals would change hands along with the properties.


Jason Glasgow with the L.A. office of land brokerage O’Donnell/Atkins represented LNR Property. Glasgow referred calls to LNR Property executives, who weren’t immediately available. Calls to AEG weren’t immediately returned.


While LNR Property and Lennar Corp. are known for tract homes and suburban shopping centers, the firms have been taking on more urban projects.


Last month, a Lennar executive told the Orange County Register the company plans to build up to 11 residential towers in Anaheim, near Angel Stadium. One of the project’s towers, a 35-story building, would be the tallest residential highrise in Orange County.


Lennar is the third-largest U.S. homebuilder by stock market value. Earlier this year, LNR Property was purchased for $3.8 billion by a holding company controlled by New York private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management LP.

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