Harvard Investments and LPC creating 425KSF offices

With the just-closed, $34.34 million office acquisition of Riverview Point, Harvard Investments and Lincoln Property Company (LPC) will combine new construction with existing buildings to establish a 425,861-square-foot, Class A office campus at the borders of Tempe, Scottsdale and Mesa, Arizona.

The new development, branded collectively as Waypoint, will combine Harvard and LPC’s recently delivered Waypoint One Class A office building. Ground will be broken soon for Waypoint Two Class A office building and the existing, two-building Riverview Point portfolio.

The result is a four-building business campus situated on 34.53 acres along the Loop 202 and adjacent to Mesa Riverview, a 1.3 million-square-foot retail, hospitality and entertainment complex.

“With this activity, we’re establishing an almost half-million-square-foot office destination within one of the Valley’s brightest business corridors,” said Craig Krumwiede, president of Harvard Investments. “It is a tremendous opportunity to create a very strong new portfolio asset in the market.”

Developed in 2008, Riverview Point consists of two, two-story office buildings totaling 164,861 square-feet at 1138 and 1146 N. Alma School Rd. in Mesa. The project is 98 percent leased to tenants including Ashton Woods, Mitel Corporation, Udall Shumway PLC and the corporate headquarters for Nextcare.

Harvard and LPC will roll out a building renovation plan at Riverview Point that includes new paint, interior renovations and new monument signage to build the cohesive Waypoint brand.

The newly acquired buildings sit adjacent to Waypoint One, a two-story, 108,000 square-foot Class A project that was developed and fully pre-leased last year by Harvard and LPC.

Located at 1150 N. Alma School Rd. in Mesa, Waypoint One is now 100 percent occupied by American Traffic Solutions (ATS). ATS moved into Waypoint One in November, consolidating approximately 500 employees from Scottsdale and Tempe to create a new corporate headquarters.

In March, Harvard and LPC will break ground on Waypoint Two, a 152,000-square-foot Class A office building adjacent to Waypoint One at 1130 N. Alma School Rd. in Mesa. Waypoint Two is designed to accommodate single- and multiple-occupancy users. Like Waypoint One, it will provide a “high-tech” aesthetic with clean lines, timeless materials, simple detailing, bright and open lobbies and workspaces and abundant parking.

“On its own, Riverview Point is a successful project that is almost fully leased to a roster of stable tenants. Waypoint One adds the vibrancy of American Traffic Solutions and Waypoint Two gives us the runway to expand on that vibrancy,” said David Krumwiede, Lincoln Property Company’s executive vice president. “By controlling this entire site, we have the flexibility and freedom to build a very distinct and modern office footprint in the East Valley.”

The new four-building Waypoint campus sits just six miles east of Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, with convenient access to Loop 101 at Rio Salado Parkway and the Loop 202 at Dobson and Alma School Roads.

Waypoint is less than one mile from the new Cubs Spring Training Facility and the newly reconfigured Riverview Park. It joins an established business and hospitality environment that includes the mixed-use Mesa Riverview, a Hyatt Place Hotel and a 180-room, upscale brand Sheraton Hotel with amenities including full-service restaurants, bars, swimming pool, fitness facility and more than 30,000 square feet of meeting and event space.

Barry Gabel and Chris Marchildon of CBRE represented the seller, R&R Riverview LLC, in the Riverview Point transaction. The financing partner is BMO Harris.

LPC will manage all four buildings at the joint project with Harvard Investments.