Greenlaw and Walton Street Aim to Redevelop OC Office Park

Greenlaw Partners and Walton Street Capital want to redevelop a 436,000-square-foot business park in Santa Ana for industrial use.

Irvine-based Greenlaw and Chicago-based Walton Street have filed plans to revamp Park 55, a five-building office campus at 1221-1251 East Dyer Road, the Orange County Business Journal reported.

They’re also looking for an investor to buy the $60 million senior mortgage tied to the property a few blocks west of the 55 Freeway.

Greenlaw and Walton bought the 20.7-acre campus once known as the Orange County Business Center in 2018 for $74 million. They recently sank more than $10 million into upgrades, according to marketing materials.

Plans call for demolishing two office buildings to make way for three industrial buildings containing 69,300, 47,300 and 59,400 square feet, with new parking, landscaping and onsite improvements, according to the Business Journal, citing a filing with the city.

The project would require a zoning change.

At the same time, Greenlaw and Walton aim to sell the property, according to area brokers, with the sale of the $60 million loan.

The property’s partners refinanced the complex in early 2021 through a floating-rate bridge loan. Cushman & Wakefield has the listing for the potential sale.

Financing options for office buildings have plunged over the past year, with lenders viewing them as a risky investment during a cycle of rising vacancies. About 80 percent of companies that renewed their leases last year downsized their square footage by an average of 25 percent, according to Cushman & Wakefield.

Greenlaw recently sold a two-building office campus on the other side of the 55 Freeway to Terreno Realty for $14.8 million. The new owner plans its own office-to-industrial conversion, according to the Business Journal.

— Dana Bartholomew