FDIC Closing Temporary Satellite Office

IRVINE, CA-The FDIC plans to close the temporary office that it has been operating here "in recognition of the signs of the improving health of the banking industry in the Western US," the federal agency says. The FDIC has been operating the temporary office at the Irvine Co.'s 40 Pacifica building in the Irvine Spectrum. The closing date for the office will be Jan. 13, 2012.

The FDIC signed a three-year lease with two one-year options for 200,000 square feet of office space in 2008, according to a GlobeSt.com report at the time. The federal agency said at the time that it would be a temporary office to manage receiverships and to liquidate assets from failed financial institutions primarily located in the Western US.

The agency said that its board authorized the office, called the West Coast Temporary Satellite Office, for an initial three-year term, with the option of extending it if workload supported such a move. "Based on ongoing analysis and in recognition of the signs of the improving health of the banking industry in the western United States, the FDIC has determined that the current projected workload does not support continuing the temporary office beyond its initial three-year term," the agency said in announcing its plans to close the office.

Industry observers said that the FDIC's lease, terms of which were not disclosed, provided a boost for the Orange County office market at a time when it was sorely needed. The market, which has shown signs of improvement in the past year, was reeling in 2008 from the recent effects of the collapse of the subprime mortgage industry, which was a major user of space in Orange County.

Bret Edwards, acting director of the FDIC's Division of Resolutions and Receiverships Bret Edwards said in the prepared statement: "The West Coast Temporary Satellite Office provided substantial support to the workload needs of the FDIC at a critical time. I thank all of the employees for their hard work and accomplishments, including the seamless management of 94 resolutions."

Subsequent to the West Coast Office, the FDIC also established East Coast Temporary Satellite Office in Jacksonville, FL and a Midwest Temporary Satellite Offices in Schaumberg, IL. The FDIC is continuing to monitor and analyze the workloads for both of these offices and tentatively anticipates concluding their work at the end of the respective initial authorization periods. These temporary offices have been primarily staffed by non-permanent employees and contractors.