CARPINTERIA – The highest value commercial sale ever recorded in Carpinteria just closed at 6303-6309 Carpinteria Ave. Montana Avenue Capital Partners, LLC (“MAC”) – a Santa Monica investment, management, and development firm – purchased the 118,394 square foot oceanfront office campus. The sale price was not disclosed, although the property was originally listed for $32.5 million.

Francois DeJohn and Steve Hayes of Hayes Commercial Group represented both parties in the transaction. It clocks in as the highest value commercial sale on the South Coast this year. The previous owner had held the campus for 16 years.

Situated on nine acres overlooking the Pacific Ocean, the property is the longtime headquarters of CKE Restaurant Holdings, Inc. – the owner of Carl’s Jr, Hardee’s, and Green Burrito – and recently became home to Procore Technologies, Inc., a cloud-based construction management software firm. Procore occupies two buildings on the campus, while CKE occupies the third building.

DeJohn and Hayes are representing MAC in the lease-up of the remaining 46,000 SF of vacant space on the campus. MAC is working with pk:architecture to significantly upgrade the exterior and interior of the unoccupied space by adding indoor-outdoor collaborative space and patio areas, glass roll-up doors, new signage and architectural features, EV charging stations, and exposing existing 15 foot ceiling heights, among other “creative” improvements.

“The improvements to the campus will appeal to high-tech companies and corporate office users,” DeJohn said. “In addition to the incredible oceanfront setting on the bluffs, the location of this property enables tenants to attract employees from both Ventura and the Santa Barbara area.”

This sale is occurring at a time when office demand is picking up in Carpinteria. Two large existing tenants on the bluffs are expanding and require more space. In addition, the 46,806 SF office building at 5464 Carpinteria Ave is slated for conversion to a senior living property, which will displace several office tenants and increase demand locally. “I wouldn’t be surprised to see Carpinteria’s vacancy cut in half in the next year,” DeJohn said.

Including this transaction, DeJohn and Hayes have completed 10 commercial sales valued at $52 million so far in 2015.