DeVry University Inks Deal for 48,000-SF Campus

The new DeVry space will be built within the 54.5-acre portion of Douglas Park that is being developed by Newcastle Partners and Rreef. The entire Douglas Park project, which will ultimately consist of 261 acres upon completion, is located at the former Boeing aircraft manufacturing site on Lakewood Boulevard immediately adjacent to Long Beach Airport.

The DeVry deal marks the largest office lease in the Long Beach Airport submarket since 2007 and the first tenant announced at Douglas Park, according to the developers. The 47,500-square-foot DeVry facility will be a class A office building that will be situated on 3.7 acres and will be designed for LEED Silver certification.

Construction is expected to start in May and to be completed in March 2010. The project will include 360 parking spaces, outside gathering areas and infrastructure for future solar power.

Jackson Smith, a partner with Newcastle Partners, says that the lease represents a strategic move for DeVry, which will have room for future growth with its option to expand into the adjacent 20,000-square-foot building. DeVry will be relocating from its nearby Long Beach campus where it occupies 98,000 square feet.

The Douglas Park property will serve as the new site of the Long Beach campus, with the majority of the facility to include classrooms and labs. Newcastle Partners and Rreef were represented by Rick Warner and Gregg Kirkpatrick of CB Richard Ellis. DeVry was represented by Travis Boyd of Cushman & Wakefield. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but asking rate for the space is $1.95 per square foot, triple-net.

Douglas Park will ultimately include approximately four million square feet of commercial space including office, industrial, retail and hotels along with 9.9 acres of parks. The two-phase, 54.5-acre portion that Newcastle Partners and Rreef are developing is valued at an estimated $350 million upon final build-out.