Patrick Chraghchian entity buys Ameron Center in Pasadena for $40.5M

An entity connected to developer Patrick Chraghchian, president of American General Contractors, has purchased a 175,800-square-foot Class A office complex in Pasadena for $40.5 million, The Real Deal has learned.

The entity bought the property at 245 South Los Robles Street, known as Ameron Center, for roughly $230 a square foot from Kennedy Wilson. The seller had acquired the property for only $39 million in 2014, investing $16 million in equity and securing a $23 million loan on the property from JPMorgan Chase.

It is only 25 percent leased, according to CoStar. Tenants include several law firms. The site could be used for development, as AGC is a multifamily developer and architecture firm.

Berkadia represented the buyer and seller, according to Real Capital Analytics. A representative of the brokerage could not immediately be reached for comment. Chraghchian and a representative of Kennedy Wilson could not be reached.

This is not Chraghchian’s first venture in the area. AGC developed the Burton, a 34-unit condo development, just down the street at 133 South Los Robles. Last year, in partnership with Holualoa Companies, Chraghchian acquired the Thatcher Medical Building at 960 East Green Street in Pasadena.

In nearby Glendale, he plans to build a 55-unit apartment project that would replace a former Bob’s Big Boy restaurant at 1407 West Glenoaks Boulevard. AGC originally planned to build a 74-unit condominium development, but scaled the project down after the City Council denied the request based on residents’ concerns.