Graymark Capital buys big Pasadena office complex in R&D hub

Graymark Capital has expanded its Pasadena footprint with the purchase of an office campus whose tenants include technology and creative office firms.

The San Francisco-based firm acquired the Eaton Canyon Tech Center for $30 million, a two-building campus with lease-up potential. More than half of its space is now vacant. The 219,377-square-foot complex also leases out space to medical science firms. It spans nearly 12 acres at 2923 and 2947 Bradley Street, at the base of the San Gabriel Mountains. Graymark declined to comment on future plans for the property.

The seller was Texas-based Lone Star Funds. The campus last sold for $24.4 million in 2015, records show.

The two buildings were completed in 1984. As of July, it was 45 percent leased, according to marketing materials. Tenants include Cogent Communications, York Risk Services Group, Forza Silicon Corp., Abeo Management Corp., and Coverall North America.

Research and development firms have helped drive the strong office market in Pasadena. The city ranks fourth highest in per capita income and takes in more than $1.9 billion in annual federal R&D funding, according to JLL.

Earlier this year, biometrics firms Gemalto Cogent Inc. signed a $14 million lease at a different Pasadena office building owned by Graymark Capital and Blue Vista Capital Management. The two firms purchased that building for $16.3 million. Around the same time, a local firm filed plans to build a medical office and retail complex near Huntington Hospital in Pasadena.

GM Cruise also signed a seven-year, $11.4 million lease for 47,000 square feet in Pasadena this year.