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| COMMERCIAL
REAL ESTATE Demand for office and industrial space in Ventura County was strong throughout 1998. Absorption of both new and existing space in both the office and industrial sectors was prolific. Increased leasing activity in both the West and East County areas caused commercial vacancy rates to fall further during 1998. The relatively strong demand for a business location in Ventura County has prompted more new development, particularly of retail and industrial space in the County. Click on the graph to see a larger image. |
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Nearly 3 million square feet of industrial space was started in 1998. About 2.3 million square feet was completed during the year. In 1999, another 1/2 million square feet will be started in Ventura County. |
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Office vacancy rates in the
eastern half of Ventura County fell to 10.2 percent in December 1998, according to UCSB. This is the lowest rate of office building vacancy on record for the East County.
Office space is especially scarce in the Conejo Valley, where rates have declined to 6.7
percent. Recent leasing activity by Fast Forward in Thousand Oaks and Pinkerton Security
in Westlake Village, are responsible for pushing office vacancy in the western half of the
County to an all time low for the decade. In Oxnard, the office vacancy rate has tumbled
over the last 12 months, from 18.3 percent in December 1997 to 12.3 percent in December
1998. |
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Industrial vacancy edged up slightly at the end of the year in Ventura County. New industrial space completed in Oxnard pushed the overall vacancy rate in the County to 8.3 percent at the end of 1998. For the year however, the average rate of industrial vacancy dropped from 8.6 percent in 1997 to 7.8 percent in 1998. Vacancy in Oxnard rose sharply as 958,500 square feet of industrial space was completed during the year. Elsewhere in Ventura County, vacancies dropped, and sharply in a number of submarkets. Lease activity by Countrywide and Auriga of 110,000 and 76,000 square feet respectively caused average vacancy in Simi Valley to drop to 6.6 percent. In the East County, the
vacant 577,000 square foot Northrup facility significantly affects the overall vacancy
rate in the area. The facility was finally sold to investors (IDS) who are now renovating
if for multi-tenant occupancy. Currently, vacant industrial space represents 8.3 percent
of total industrial space in place. |
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RETAIL VACANCY Demand for retail space has been spectacular in Ventura county over the last two years. In 1997, and 1998, retail markets experienced the fastest growth of consumer spending during the decade. There are no large retail centers or stores available in the County. The retail space vacancy rate at the end of 1998 was a healthy 6.0 percent. In the East County, the retail vacancy rate is 4.3 percent. |
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Currently, Simi Valley at the Plaza is under construction along with the renovation of the old Buenaventura Mall. The new center, planned to be a total of 1.056 million square feet, will be renamed Pacific View when it reopens in November 1999. Click on the graph to see a larger image. |
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The demand for commercial space continued strong in Ventura County during 1998. Though vacancy rates moved higher for some sub-area markets of the County, most of the increase was due to an expansion in the industrial base, by single building tenants and speculative developers. There is less evidence that office and industrial space was absorbed by new firm relocations in eastern (or western) Ventura County. Nearly all of the other industrial and office absorption is from existing firm expansion. All markets appear stable and vibrant, consistent with a local economy that is healthy and expansive. |
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Editors Note: The vacancy rate survey is conducted quarterly by UCSB Quarterly Report for the eastern and western cities of Ventura County. All the commercial vacancy data presented here was provided by UCSB Quarterly Report. |
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