Equipment company leasing printer’s former spot in Goleta
Alex Kacik
Garden tool seller and repair business A-OK Power Equipment is expanding into Old Town Goleta.
The Santa Barbara-based company recently signed a lease at a 5,562-square-foot space at 5777 Hollister Ave. Owner Jim Gally, who also owns Carpinteria Valley Lumber and Cantwell’s Markets, is expanding into his fifth location. A-OK Power Equipment is taking over the former Wilson Printing spot.
Dale Wilson, who recently celebrated Wilson Printing’s 40th year in business in Old Town, is consolidating to his other storefront at 5799 Hollister Ave.
Wilson is selling some of the equipment he isn’t using and “right-sizing” to adjust to today’s market.
“The industry is changing,” Wilson told the Business Times. “I do a third of the business compared to several years ago. A lot of other printers are in the same boat. There’s a whole lot of stuff that we used to print that isn’t getting printed anymore like books and marketing materials. But as crowded as the Internet is today, people are finding there is still a target audience they can reach through print.”
A-OK signed a 10-year lease with an option to purchase, according to Pam Scott of the Santa Barbara-based real estate firm Lee & Associates, which represented A-OK. Andy Adler of Century 21 represented Wilson Printing.
The space features 30 parking spaces and was listed at $1.69 per square foot. Wilson purchased the property in 1993 for $670,000 and the building was constructed in 1970, property records show.
A-OK, which has been in business since 1978, sells gardening equipment ranging from chainsaws to lawnmowers. It has locations in Santa Barbara, Carpinteria, Solvang and Escondido.
Oxnard shopping center sold
The Lemon Grove Plaza shopping center in Oxnard was sold for $8.1 million, Camarillo-based real estate investment firm CBRE recently announced.
The 99,876-square-foot center is on 9.7 acres at 2001 Oxnard Blvd. It currently hosts Smart & Final Extra, Jersey Mike’s Subs, Burger King and Econo Lube & Tune. A private family trust sold the center to Lemon Grove Plaza Inc. Alex Kozakov, Patrick Wade, Larry Tanji, Scott Siegel and Maxx Cohen of CBRE represented the seller.
“Lemon Grove Plaza is subject to a 33-year triple-net ground lease, with a recent notice to extend the lease another 33 years,” Kozakov said in a news release. “This provides the new owner a well-located investment property with excellent intrinsic value and zero management responsibilities.”
The shopping center has an average traffic count of more than 37,000 vehicles per day.
Oxnard apartment complex bought
A 24-unit multifamily housing complex in Oxnard was sold for $3.7 million.
The complex at 1930 Lobelia Drive features 16 one-bedroom units and eight two-bedrooms, ranging from $1,050 to $1,300 per month. A local real estate investor purchased the property as part of a 1031 exchange, rolling proceeds from the sale of another out-of-state property into the new investment.
The seller was another local real estate investor who has made a business out of fixing up housing units, said Craig Lieberman, who owns Apartment Investment Specialists, which has offices in Ventura and Santa Barbara.
There is around a 2 percent vacancy rate for rental units in Ventura County and Lieberman expects rental rates to continue to increase, he said.
“Risk is minimal right now because rental demand is so strong,” Lieberman told the Business Times. “There’s not a lot of areas available for buildout.”
The 14,030-square-foot, two-story complex was built in 1970. The property last changed hands in 2014 for $3 million, property records show.
Container store coming to Oxnard
The Container Store will open in The Collection at RiverPark in Oxnard on Nov. 14.
The Texas-based container retailer looks to hire about 45 people and has close to 80 stores nationwide. It will donate 10 percent of its sales generated from its grand opening to Santa Barbara-based Casa Pacifica, a nonprofit that helps kids and families deal with crises like neglect and abuse.
The relatively new $250 million, 650,000-square-foot open-air shopping center just off Highway 101 is anchored by Target, REI and Whole Foods Market.
• Contact Alex Kacik at akacik@pacbiztimes.com.
