Barings, Lincoln JV Acquires Bay Area Life Science Portfolio
Company is planning $20M in renovations for three buildings encompassing 228K SF.
Barings, in a joint venture with Lincoln Property Co. (LPC), has acquired a three-building life science portfolio encompassing 228K SF in Fremont, CA from Angelo Gordon.
Terms of the deal, brokered by Newmark, were not disclosed. According to public records, LPC and Angelo Gordon purchased the GMP-compliant assets last year for $61.7M.
According to Steven Golubchik, Newmark executive vice chairman, the portfolio provided “the opportunity to acquire effectively all of the GMP vacancy within the Fremont market.”
“As onshoring trends continue and life science users seek production facilities (in proximity) to their R&D, product like the Fremont GMP portfolio will remain in high demand,” Golubchik said, in a statement.
Baring said it has plans to make up to $20M in interior and exterior improvements in the portfolio.
“These life science assets are a tremendous addition to Barings’ portfolio of buildings in leading life science hubs where lab demand is high and well-funded innovation thrives,” said Joe Gorin, Barings’ head of US acquisitions and portfolio management, in a statement.
“This investment further demonstrates Barings’ commitment to this critical, specialized asset class, particularly in markets where STEM-oriented, skilled workforces continue to grow,” Gorin said.
Each of the three buildings, which are located on Ardenwood Blvd., Research Ave. and Milmont Dr. in Fremont, offer between 50K SF and 100K SF of leasable space with a first floor designed for lab and manufacturing use and a mezzanine floor for offices and conference rooms.
The buildings include clear heights of over 20 ft., a minimum of 2,000 amps of power, numerous dock-high and at-grade doors, and 3.4x parking rations.
The building locations are in close proximity to I-880 and I-680 as well as San Jose International Airport. Barings cited a recent report from Newmark Research which said that the Fremont market, surrounded by leasing science companies and major universities, currently is experiencing a severe supply-demand imbalance with current tenant demand of 538,000 SF and a vacancy rate under 5%.
“With high demand and low vacancy, we continue to hear from (life science) companies looking for properties that will meet their specific requirements. There’s no slowing down for the Bay Area cluster as life science leaders want to be amongst their peers in this influential, stimulating market,” said David Otte, Barings’ Managing Director.
Barings has been expanding its Bay Area life science portfolio. Last year, it purchased two buildings in Burlingame for $170M for a 536K SF life science project.