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Downtown San Diego Is on Fire; Will Chargers Join the Party?

l-r: High-rises at 525 B Street, 530 B Street and 101 Ash Street are all changing hands.

By Jason Hughes

More Musical Ownership Chairs

525 B Street (aka the Procopio building) is in escrow to LaSalle Investment Management (a subsidiary of Jones Lang LaSalle or JLL). 530 B Street is in escrow to Bosa (the prolific Downtown San Diego bay front condo developer out of Vancouver) – who also owns the former Driver Building on 5th Avenue and the Paladion Building across from Nordstrom (which formerly housed American Specialty Health many years ago). Additionally, the former Sempra Building is for sale, with escrow negotiations currently underway. Also, the Executive Complex (located at 1010 Second Avenue) has been in and out of escrow (and has a $40 million balloon payment due next month), and Emerald Plaza is rumored to hit the streets soon as well.

Good News – Bad News

Downtown is on fire (figuratively) and is the clear locational choice for progressive firms wanting to pack in geographic, amenity-rich benefits for their employees. We’re seeing lots and lots of activity, with more tenants having recently moved or in the process of moving downtown than ever before. The bad news is that rents are spiking and options are waning for good space. The so-so news is that there are still plenty of options for less desirable space – with rents to reflect it.

Chargers in Downtown???!!!

Unlikely. Just more drama. As much as I would love to see a stadium downtown, I wouldn’t bet on a Chargers presence here. For those of you who don’t remember, the mayor’s stadium task force, which I co-chaired, spent a month evaluating downtown. There are simply too many hurdles to give it a positive prognosis. But if the Chargers are ready to get serious then they know who to talk to. Good job with your patience this whole time, Mr. Mayor.

Jason Hughes is founder of Hughes Marino, an award-winning commercial real estate company with offices across the nation. A pioneer in the field of tenant representation, Jason has exclusively represented tenants and buyers for more than 30 years. Contact Jason at 1-844-662-6635 or jason@hughesmarino.com to learn more.



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