School District Closes 3 Lease Deals

The Los Angeles Unified School District has completed three office lease transactions valued at $14.1million. The leases include new offices in the City of Commerce and the Media Tech Center north of downtown Los Angeles, along with the extension of a lease at a downtown high-rise.

The largest of the three involves the relocation of the district’s transportation branch from a site near downtown to about 35,000 square feet at the new Media Tech Center, east of the interchange of the Golden State and Glendale freeways. The 10-year lease with the developer--an affiliate of Legacy Partners Commercial--is valued at $5.9 million.

Trammell Crow Co.’s Jonathan Larsen and Lisa St. John represented the school district in the lease negotiations. David Harding, Peter Poulson and Kevin Duffy of CB Richard Ellis negotiated for the developers.

LAUSD agreed to relocate administrative operations of its District J from downtown L.A. to a facility in Commerce, which is closer to District J schools. That 10-year deal covering 22,500 square feet at 5800 S. Eastern Ave. is valued at about $5.7 million. Holly Forsythe represented landlord Abby Co. Trammell Crow’s Larsen, St. John and Tom Sheets negotiated for LAUSD.

L.A. Unified also extended the lease on some of its offices at 611 W. 6th St. for an additional 30 months. Though the District J group will vacate that property, other operations will remain within 52,500 square feet of offices there.

Those include the District I group, for which the Trammell Crow team is negotiating a possible move to a planned office development on property owned by First AME Church subsidiary Grant Housing Partnership at 103rd Street and Central Avenue, Larsen said.

The downtown lease extension is valued at $2.5 million. St. John and Larsen negotiated for the district. Stephen Koile of Metcom Management represented property owner 611 W. 6th Street Associates.