Downtown Namvar Deal May Usher In Many More

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An industrial property near downtown Los Angeles owned by Namco Capital Group Inc., the bankrupt West L.A. investment company of beleaguered businessman Ezri Namvar, is being sold for $3.1 million, according to U.S. Bankruptcy Court documents.

The deal is significant because it’s likely the first drop in a flood of sales from the portfolios of Namco and Namvar, who is also in bankruptcy. Until now, the trustees have only allowed brokers to try to sell a handful of large properties from the portfolios.

Any proceeds from the sale would be used to pay Namco creditors. In total, Namvar and Namco owe at least $866 million to creditors. Namvar amassed a real estate empire valued at $2.43 billion as of summer 2008. Once his businesses soured during the economic collapse in the last half of that year, Namvar was accused by creditors of running a Ponzi scheme.

AJ Industrial Properties LLC has agreed to purchase the two-story industrial building, but the deal is subject to court approval, according to bankruptcy court documents. Andrew Wilson of Lee & Associates Commercial Real Estate Services said it should take about 45 days to close the deal. The prospective buyer’s offer is subject to overbid, however, which could extend the time line.

AJ Industrial couldn’t be contacted. Wilson, who is representing both sides of the deal, declined to share information about the buyer.

The property at 1929 Pico Blvd. has been leased by Loomis Armored, an armored car and cash-handling company, since 1978. The lease will run through September 2014.

The property includes 11,000 square feet of industrial space, 14,000 square feet of offices and a 44-space parking lot. It was listed by Lee & Associates about three months ago for $3.9 million.

Bradley Sharp, the trustee in the Chapter 11 bankruptcy of Namco, confirmed the pending sale but declined to discuss details. Namvar could not be reached for comment.

Other Namvar or Namco assets are for sale under trustee approval. The 14-story Wilshire Bundy Plaza, a 307,000-square-foot West L.A. office building that is one of the crown jewels of Namvar’s portfolio, was listed for sale in fall 2009. It’s believed the building could fetch more than $100 million. Namvar’s Brentwood mansion is on the market as well.

Pat Ayau of Lee & Associates represented both sides of the Pico deal.

Arcadia Sale

A 63,074-square-foot office building in Arcadia has been purchased for $10.65 million in an all-cash transaction by a partnership that owns a neighboring lot where it wants to build a complementary building.

VG Property Investment LLC, a family partnership that has offices in Arcadia, bought the three-story building at 125 West Huntington Drive from Parsons Corp., a Pasadena engineering company. The deal closed Dec. 11.

According to broker Shadd Walker of Colliers International, who represented the buyer, VG Property owns a vacant two-acre parcel next door to the office building and would like to turn the two properties into a small office campus.

He said that VG Property still needs to get the necessary entitlements for the vacant parcel in order to develop it. VG Property plans to build a medical office building there.

Parsons had owned the building for more than two decades. It is fully occupied by WorleyParsons Ltd., an energy services firm headquartered in North Sydney, Australia. Worley acquired Parsons’ energy division in 2004 and the new independent company, WorleyParsons, remained in the Arcadia building.

WorleyParsons has a little more than a year remaining on its lease and is negotiating a renewal, Walker said.

Han Widjaja of Colliers also represented the buyer and Steve Davis of Alliance Management Corp. represented Parsons. VG Property and Davis did not return calls seeking comment and Parsons’ media department was closed because of the BCS National Championship Game at the Rose Bowl.

Doctors Are In

Two orthopedic surgeons have signed separate leases in Beverly Hills in a sign that the medical office market remains strong despite the recession.

While terms of the transactions, which both closed Dec. 1, were not disclosed, in total they were worth about $2.3 million, according to real estate sources.

In one deal, the medical corporation of Dr. Brad Penenberg signed a five-year lease for 5,309 square feet at 120 S. Spalding Drive. In the other, the medical corporation of Dr. Andrew Weiss signed a seven-year lease for 2,043 square feet at 150 N. Robertson Blvd.

“It’s a pretty tight market for Beverly Hills,” said Andrew Kirsh, a partner at Raines Law Group who represented both doctors.

New York-based investor LeFrak Organization Inc., owner of the Spalding building, was represented by Seth Weissman of Jeffer Mangels Butler & Marmaro LLP and Steve Salas of Madison Partners. Beverly Hills Medical Plaza Properties Ltd., owner of the Robertson property, was represented by Ron Mandell of Moss Levitt & Mandell LLP. Weiss was also represented by Salas.

Staff reporter Daniel Miller can be reached at [email protected] or (323) 549-5225, ext. 263.

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