Design Firm to Plumb O.C. High-Tech Market

A brisk demand for new headquarters facilities has attracted another architectural and design firm to Orange County. San Diego-based Carrier Johnson Wu, a 70-person firm that specializes in corporate, public and hotel projects, recently set up a five-person office off Jamboree Road in Irvine. It moved into the area to take advantage of the explosive growth among high-tech firms, principal Michael Johnson said. It also made the move because Orange County architect Mark Loxsom, who helped head up Ehrlich-Rominger in Newport Beach, was available after leaving that firm. Johnson said he hopes to bring a greater emphasis on interior design to Orange County’s sterile high-tech facilities. More than half of the firm’s employees are designers.

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Melinda Fulmer covers real estate for The Times. She can be reached at (714) 966-7832.