Hughes Aircraft, City Seek Industrial Buyer
The city and Hughes Aircraft Co. plan to launch an aggressive campaign this year to find an industrial business to buy Hughes’ Fullerton plant.
Hughes rocked the city in September 1994 with news that it was closing most of its Fullerton operation. The company is the city’s largest private employer.
A couple of buildings on the site in northwest Fullerton will remain, with 1,400 employees. Almost 1,000 people were laid off.
The city and Hughes are seeking an industrial buyer for the site because that would create jobs. “I think it’s better for the community if we get some type of industry in here,” said John Donaldson, manager of real estate operations for Hughes.
The company and the city say they hope to land a buyer by year’s end. Officials could not give details of how they plan to market the property or what they expect the 2 million-square-foot parcel to bring.
“We’re only in the planning stages,” Donaldson said. “We have no market analysis yet, so the price has not been set.”
Should the city and the company fail to attract a buyer, then the land could be made available to developers to build as many as 1,000 homes, a shopping center, business park and recreation facilities.
