Paragon Real Estate Fund has purchased an East Village block occupied by the 132,954 SF, five-building complex known as the Arts Center that includes the NewSchool of Architecture & Design for $34M, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports. The seller was Carleton Management and the Gordon Bishop family.

Paragon co-founder Ricardo Jinich said his firm will evaluate options for redeveloping the site, which is bounded by Park Boulevard and F, G and 13th streets, and how the NewSchool could be incorporated into the new project by 2020, when the NewSchool’s lease expires. He said the site has tremendous potential for creative office, as well as a mixed-use or high-rise condos.

The Arts Center, which includes buildings constructed in between 1924 and 1971, was formerly the site of Ratner’s clothing manufacturing company. Paragon also owns several office and retail properties in downtown, including the Gaslamp Quarter’s historic Louis Bank of Commerce building and the recently restored Unicorn retail space at Seventh Avenue and J Street.

According to CoStar, the company also owns the 14K SF Torrey Highlands Plaza on Camino del Sur, the 49,322 SF Coronado Plaza and 9,799 SF of retail at The Mission Project on Washington Street in Mission Hill.