Invesco signs defense tech firm to one of OC’s biggest office leases

Invesco Real Estate and SteelWave have signed a defense technology firm to a 640,000-square-foot lease at an under-construction creative office complex in Costa Mesa. The lease is one of the largest ever in Orange County, according to the Los Angeles Times, which first reported on the deal.

Anduril inked the lease to occupy 1375 Sunflower Avenue, which was the former Los Angeles Times office and printing press. Construction to transform the property, which will be called “The Press,” began in early 2019.

The Anduril lease includes the entire 450,000-square-foot complex under construction and an additional 190,000-square-foot building to serve as its research and development center. A parking lot will also be added to the complex.

Invesco and SteelWave bought the property in 2017. The duo then got to work on an office conversion that is valued at around $200 million. SteelWave and Orange County-based 5-Ronin are overseeing the redevelopment.

The property will serve as headquarters for Anduril, which is now based in Irvine. Anduril was founded in 2017 by Palmer Luckey, who also founded the Oculus virtual reality company.

The lease is a big score in a struggling market across the region. Total leasing in Orange County last year was the lowest it’s been in more than a decade. In L.A., the office market has seen fewer lease deals and rising vacancies.

Besides the ongoing redevelopment project, Invesco also owns the Hive office campus in Costa Mesa, more than half of which is leased to the Los Angeles Chargers football franchise.

Anduril develops and builds drones, sensors and software systems connecting them. In July, the Department of Homeland Security awarded the company a contract worth up to $250 million to expand its security system deployed along the U.S.-Mexico border. The Air Force in September awarded Anduril with a contract worth up to $950 million following a demonstration of its systems. [LAT] — Dennis Lynch