Bixby Land Plans To Reinvent Downtown Portland Building As Creative Office

Courtesy of Bixby Land Co.
The Marquam Building, Portland

SoCal-based Bixby Land Co. acquired the Marquam Building in Downtown Portland for $10.8M, capping a three-building, 260K SF assemblage in the area. Next: redeveloping the buildings into creative office, as it has done in California.

The acquisition of the 75K SF property at 2501 Southwest First Ave. follows Bixby’s $33.4M purchase of the adjacent CDK Plaza in December 2016. The company is now pursuing an $8M redevelopment of that property to transform its work environment.

The projects represent Bixby’s first foray into the Portland market, where it sees upside potential, considering property here is less expensive than in California, where the company has redesigned over 30 buildings since 2010. In the case of the Marquam Building, Bixby was further attracted to the building’s 66% occupancy at rents 50% below market.

Courtesy of Mike Severson
Mike Severson, Bixby Land Co.

“We like many aspects of the Portland investment market, not the least of which is the competitive cost basis dynamic with which to execute our value-add strategies,” Bixby Executive Vice President and Chief Acquisitions Officer Mike Severson said. “We’re looking for more investments in the area.”

The company has not detailed plans for the redevelopment yet, and no two are quite alike. But Bixby has been successful in its strategy.

In Silicon Valley, for example, Bixby's THE Campus project saw Verizon leasing 136K SF within 90 days of completion and ASML US taking the balance of the project six months later. The property features couch seating areas, fire pits and an outdoor kitchen. Tenants can burn calories on the bocce ball court, outdoor exercise deck and yoga area.

Chris Johnson of Colliers International repped Bixby, while the seller, OCF Joseph E. Weston Public Foundation, repped itself.

Continue reading this story with a free account

Log in or register
Sign up for more articles like this
Subscribe to Bisnow's Portland Newsletters
Related Stories

DivcoWest Sells Glendale Office Building For $70M

Hines And Rialto Close Office Credit Fund At $1.1B

Rig Collapse At Citadel HQ Site Sends 4 To Hospital

Northern Virginia Office Tower Sells For Double Its 2024 Price

Oxford Properties' U.S. Investment Head On Why It's Buying Office Again — And Where

Fertility Provider Opens Clinic At 1900 Lawrence Office Tower: The Denver Deal Sheet

Office Revenues Are Failing To Keep Pace With Expenses

Security Tech Firm Plans Loudoun HQ Move: The D.C. Deal Sheet

Stephen Ross Expands Palm Beach Empire With Massive Boca Raton Campus

25 Years After 9/11, Lower Manhattan Is Finally Firing On All Cylinders

Tishman Speyer Seeks $92M Tax Break For Next Hudson Yards Office Tower

Charles Cohen Plans $350M Office Project After Resolving Debt Ordeal