JMB Realty is one of the few landlords filling up office space — and the building isn’t even finished yet.
Private equity firm Clearlake Capital Group has signed a lease to take about 150,000 square feet at JMB Realty’s 1950 Avenue of the Stars development, according to a source familiar with the deal. CBRE’s Jeff Pion brokered the deal on behalf of Clearlake, while Cushman & Wakefield’s Eric Olofson represented JMB. Clearlake declined to comment.
The lease runs for more than 15 years. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
JMB, the Chicago-based investment firm, is building a 37-story tower on the site, set to rise by 2026.
The deal marks the second-largest office lease signed across L.A. County this year. Sony Pictures Animation still takes the cake with a 225,000-square-foot lease at Onni Group’s 5700 Wilshire Boulevard signed in February.
Clearlake will occupy the top eight floors of the JMB building and will move in when the 700,000-square-foot building opens, the source added.
In January 2022, talent firm Creative Artists Agency signed a deal to take up part of the building, moving its headquarters there in 2026, but did not disclose how much space it would occupy.
A few months prior, CAA announced it planned to merge with ICM, with CAA President Richard Lovett saying the companies were “all going to be in one location together as soon as time allows.”
The source said CAA will have the rest of the building, meaning about 550,000 square feet.
Clearlake, which was founded in 2006 and has invested in everything from Jacuzzi to U.K. Premier League football club Chelsea, currently leases about 35,000 square feet at 233 Wilshire Boulevard. That building is owned by Douglas Emmett, according to property records filed with L.A. County.
Century City is one of the bright spots across L.A.’s office market and offers more square footage for tenants looking to expand across the Westside. About 15 percent of office space in Century City was available in the second quarter, according to Savills, compared to L.A.’s overall availability of nearly 30 percent.