Balcor Takes 50% Interest in Tishman Assets : Management Company Seen Benefitting for Future Acquisitions

Skokie, Ill.-based Balcor has purchased a 50% interest in Los Angeles-based Tishman West Management Corp.’s operating assets for $20 million, and the two companies have signed a joint-venture agreement to develop, lease, manage and build commercial properties.

Balcor, a Shearson Lehman Hutton subsidiary that manages more than $8 billion in assets, began a corporate diversification program three years ago. Tishman West is the county’s largest building management company and is one of the nation’s biggest diversified commercial developers.

The new entity will be called Tishman West Cos. Under terms of the agreement, Balcor will not receive an interest in any of the properties already owned by Tishman West--a portfolio that includes partial ownership of City Tower in Orange, the Tishman Midvale building in Westwood, and the Westwood Terrace and Westwood Atrium in West Los Angeles.

Source of Financing

However, Balcor will share in Tishman West’s management and leasing contracts for buildings that include downtown’s Arco Plaza, Security Pacific Plaza, Biltmore Tower and Century City’s Fox Plaza.

Commercial brokerage sources say the deal will give Tishman West an important source of financing for future acquisitions and development.

The agreement combines “the financial and real estate capabilities of Balcor with the real estate expertise of Tishman West,” said Perry S. Herst Jr., president and chief executive of Tishman West.

Stephen H. Silverstein, Balcor’s chairman and chief executive, said the arrangement “provides an opportunity for Balcor to substantially strengthen its position in the commercial real estate management market.”