REal Talk with Adam Perrotta - Tues., July 8th

By Adam Perrotta, News Writer

--A lot of news out of the Left Coast today, including the approval of a massive makeover for LAX airport, Laramar Group opening its California office with a bang and troubled Maguire Properties selling off an Orange County asset in its continuing efforts to climb out of debt.

With the approval from L.A.’s Board of Airport Commissioners, LAX's $1.8 billion facelift looks to be a go. Interestingly, the funding is tied to an agreement with a cadre of labor organizations and unions involved in the construction, so it looks as though the labor groups will have a pretty nice ace up their sleeves should any conflicts arise during the project.

Meanwhile, Chicago-based Laramar made quite a splash into California, making the largest Bay Area apartment purchase of the year thus far, according to the company. Greg Campbell will head up the firm’s operations in the state out of its newly-established Irvine office. Campbell's previous experience as director of California acquisitions for Archstone should come in handy in navigating the sometimes choppy waters of the California market.

Speaking of which, Maguire Properties remains mired in debt incurred as a result of taking on Equity Office Properties’ SoCal portfolio for nearly $3 billion last year, before the credit crunch hit. But Maguire took at least a step out of the morass today by unloading a 607,000-square-foot Irvine office for $211 million. Given Maguire’s pressing need for cash, it's likely that buyer Shorenstein Properties was pleased with the price it got for its first foray into the Orange County market. With leadership shakeups and calls for the firm to go private after having lost 65 percent of its value in the past year, Maguire might be an attractive target for a deep pocketed buyer despite its debt, largely due--ironically--to its portfolio in SoCal, which remains a strong market.