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Behind the Deals: Drawbridge Adjusts to New Workplace Strategies
At a time when many multi-tenant office investors are facing increasing pressure as a result of changing workplace strategies, San Francisco-based investor Drawbridge Realty, completed two significant lease deals.
In Santa Clara, the firm renewed a 50,000 square-foot lease for the regional headquarters of Austin-based test equipment manufacturer NI (formerly National Instruments). Meanwhile, Drawbridge executed a 63,000-square-foot lease expansion with NASDAQ-listed collectibles authenticator Collector’s Universe in Santa Ana. We asked Drawbridge CEO Mark Whiting how the company was able to follow through on both deals at the height of the pandemic.
Q: Mark, congratulations on both deals. Were they hard to get over the line?
A: Leases, whether they are new, renewals or expansions, are never simple and always take a lot of time and hard work. The pandemic has complicated things even more, but we have a great in-house team overseeing leasing as well as excellent long term tenant relationships.
Q: What were the circumstances of each deal?
A: The Santa Clara lease, at 4600 Patrick Henry Dr., with NI was interesting. It’s the third largest lease signed in Silicon Valley since the pandemic began. NI is a full building tenant and with the lease coming due we were able to structure a short-term renewal that gave them the ability to withstand the impact of the pandemic and manage their physical presence over the next few years.
In Santa Ana, we had one tenant at Pacific Center facing extreme financial distress caused by the pandemic and needing to downsize and get out of its lease, so we negotiated an early termination payment. This, in turn, allowed us to offer Collectors Universe about 63,000 square feet of additional space, which they were seeking for expansion of their global headquarters. It was a win-win for everybody.
For comments, questions or concerns, please contact Dennis Kaiser
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