Runway's First Residences Open to Major Success

PLAYA VISTA, CA—The first residential building at the Runway, a mixed-use project in downtown Playa Vista with retail and office space, has opened to tremendous success. After six weeks, the 100-unit building is two-thirds leased. The Runway has a total of 420 residential units, which will open by the end of the year.

“We couldn't be more pleased,” David Binswanger, EVP of Lincoln Property Co., tells GlobeSt.com. “We have been working on the Runway project since 2010 and began construction in 2012. With both of those dates, the market was very different. The multifamily market was still barely creeping out of the recession, certainly retail and office development were considered bad words. We tied this property up and began spending capital and drawing and preleasing back when none of us could have expected the market, from a macro perspective, and certainly the Playa Vista micro market to have recovered so quickly. To say that it is above our expectations is definitely true, but remember that we had pretty temperate expectations coming out of the recession.”

A Whole Foods Market, Cinemark Theatres, CVS and a variety of restaurants and retail shops anchor the property, while the office tenants are in the process of building out their office spaces. Despite the ongoing construction, 15 to 20 prospective tenants tour the newly completed building each day. “There is huge pent up demand for multifamily, especially amenitized multifamily,” says Binswanger. “The daily traffic reports are staggering, and the reality is that it isn't showing as well as it will because we are still under construction on the retail and the park amenities. It is going to be a lot better in three-to-four months when we are completely out of the site. So, we are very pleased with the current demand. I think it only increases as the office tenants move in.”

There are a variety of factors fueling the leasing success, from the location, which is near tech centers in the South Bay and the beach, as well as the urban setting. Playa Vista has reimagined the masterplanned community into a modern live, work and play environment. “This is a completion of a 25-year project that happens to be coinciding with a great real estate leasing market for both multifamily and office,” says Binswanger. “It has been a lot of hard work that is now amounting in tremendous opportunity for developers and tremendous opportunity for end users to be a part of this community.”

The building features a clubhouse lounge, a game area, two fitness centers, a private yoga studio, and a resort-style pool with a cabana area with a fireplace and DJ station. The property also offers guests resort access to the Resort, Playa Vista's residents-only club.