Sign in CIM Group to Put Trophy Bay Area Property Back on the Market at Higher Price, Report Says

Blackstone Backed Out of Deal for Tech-Leased Uptown Station Office Last Year

Los Angeles-based CIM Group is reportedly taking another stab at landing a buyer for its Oakland, , office building leased entirely to tech giant Square. (CoStar)

By Katie Burke CoStar News

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Heavyweight real estate developer CIM Group is reportedly relisting of one of its most prominent Bay Area office buildings at a higher price after a failed deal last year, in a move that could test whether investors' appetites for high- priced trophy properties is beginning to thaw.

The company, based in , has enlisted brokerage Newmark to help market its 396,808-square-foot Uptown Station property in Oakland, California, according to a report from Real Estate Alert. The potential $420 million listing would come more than 10 months after private equity giant Blackstone backed away from its planned $405 million purchase of the Uptown Station project.

Neither CIM nor Newmark responded to CoStar News's requests for comment.

Blackstone's decision to forgo its $20 million deposit in order to pull the plug on the deal last April marked the beginning of increasing turmoil and uncertainty throughout the Bay Area's commercial real estate market at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic.

However, with vaccine advancements and investors' increasing willingness to gamble on a fast economic rebound, CIM is reportedly aiming even higher with its goal of landing a $420 million price for the 1955 Broadway building.

The downtown Oakland property is leased to payments provider Square, which has about 355,760 square feet and has benefited from a soaring market capitalization throughout the pandemic. Popular fast food restaurant Shake Shack recently opened its first East Bay location on the ground floor after signing a 3,520-square-foot lease at the beginning of last year, according to CoStar data.

Located right at the heart of Oakland's desirable Uptown neighborhood, the eight-story building was originally set to house ride-hailing app 's headquarters.

CIM purchased the building in late 2017 for $180 million after Uber decided to back away from its East Bay plans. Square signed its lease shortly thereafter and moved in at the end of 2019.

While some property owners and investors are optimistic about the Bay Area's pre-COVID levels of activity, sales volume throughout the East Bay continues to be just a fraction of what it used to be. About $481.5 million worth of deals have closed over the past 12 months, according to CoStar data, about half of the $972 million that traded in the prior 12- month period.