Burbank, Pasadena Heating Up, Boosting New Projects.

THE Tri-Cities of Burbank, Glendale and Pasadena hummed with activity in the final quarter of 1999 as tenants made commitments for more than 500,000 square feet of office space in the market, much of it in newly built or remodeled buildings.

The burst of dealmaking showed that the market -- despite sluggish leasing in previous quarters -- remains one of L.A. County's strongest. The high demand for space also provided a healthy boost for several new office and mixed-use projects on the drawing board or under construction in the area.

The Tri-Cities posted an overall office vacancy rate of 8.9 percent in the fourth quarter, down from 10.1 percent in the previous three months, according to Cushman & Wakefield Inc. Burbank continued to lead the pack with a vacancy rate of 3.5 percent, compared with 4.7 percent in the third quarter. The Pasadena vacancy rate dropped to 6.4 percent from 9.5 percent the previous quarter, while Glendale continued to struggle with a vacancy rate of 14.8 percent vs. 14.6 percent three months earlier.

All three markets were home to at least two major lease signings during the quarter.

The biggest was in Pasadena, where EarthLink Network Inc. agreed to take 126,000 square feet at the Pasadena Tech Center at 465 Halstead St., said Todd Doney, executive managing director at Insignia/ESG Inc. The eight-year deal was worth about $20 million, he said.

Also in Pasadena, Lawyer's Title Insurance and Homespace Services each took 21,000 square feet at 251 S. Lake Ave., making the newly renovated building close to 90 percent leased, said Carlton Maese, a senior leasing manager at Insignia. In another Pasadena deal, Andy Mac Holding Co. leased 32,000 square feet in the building at 199 N. Lake Ave.

In Burbank, a newly constructed building located in an office campus being developed near the airport by M. David Paul and Associates was the hot spot for leasing activity. In November, the 215,000-square-foot building at 2255 N. Ontario St. became fully leased when Eclipse Advertising and Residential Funding signed deals for 51,000 square feet and 43,000 square feet of space, respectively, said Jeff Worth of M. David Paul.

The developer now plans to start work on the next phase of its north Burbank office campus, a 100,000-square-foot building, sometime next month. Work on the phase after that, a 200,000-square-foot building, could begin in about four months.

In Glendale, meanwhile, the struggling Glendale Plaza at 655 N. Central Ave. got a major boost earlier this month with its announcement of five new leases and two lease expansions totaling 140,000 square feet in new commitments. The largest new lease came from UnumProvident Corp., which took 67,000 square feet with options to expand to more than 110,000 square feet, said Bruce Beck, spokesman for the building's owner, PacTen Partners.

In two other large deals, Van Deventer & Hoch and the California Public Employees Retirement System each took 15,000 square feet of space, Beck said. Nearly a year after its completion, the 532,000-square-foot tower is now more than 60 percent leased.

Also in Glendale, Liberty Mutual Insurance Inc. expanded its space at 225 W. Broadway by nearly 20,000 square feet, giving it 32,000 square feet in the building, said Brad Feld, a senior director for Cushman & Wakefield.

The flurry of leasing activity was good news for two speculative office projects that broke ground in the fourth quarter,

In Pasadena, work began two months ago on a 176,000-square-foot building being developed at 1055 E. Colorado Blvd. by Koll Development, according to Eric Duyshart, business development manager for the city of Pasadena. And in Burbank, work also began on a 158,000-square-foot building being developed by Trammell Crow Co. on Hollywood Way across from the Burbank Airport, said Paul Krueger, economic development manager for the city of Burbank.

Also in Burbank, progress was made during the fourth quarter on three proposed new office projects. In the most advanced of the group, Regent Properties got Burbank city approval to build a mixed-use project that will contain 210,000 square feet of office space, 68,000 square feet of retail, 24,000 square feet of theater space and a 300-room hotel. Some final revisions are still being worked out, and Regent expects to break ground on the complex at Third Street and Olive Avenue in April.

In north Burbank, meanwhile, Zelman Development Co. is pursuing two major new projects near Burbank Airport. In the larger and more advanced of the two, Zelman is in escrow to purchase 102 acres from Lockheed Martin Corp. for a massive mixed-use project called Burbank Empire Center.

Zelman plans to put 450,000 square feet of office space, two hotels, a car dealership and 750,000 square feet of retail space on the site bounded by Buena Vista Street, Empire Avenue, Victory Place and Victory Boulevard. The company expects to receive city approval for the project within the next six months, and could start building shortly after that, according to Ben Reiling, president of Zelman.

Tri-Cities

Major Events:

* EarthLink Network Inc. leased 126,000 square feet at Pasadena Tech Center, 465 Halstead St.

* Lawyer's Title Insurance and Homespace Services each took 21,000 square feet at 251 S. Lake Ave. in Pasadena, making the newly renovated building nearly 90 percent leased.

* A new office building at 2255 N. Ontario St. became fully leased when Eclipse Advertising and Residential Funding sign deals for 51,000 square feet and 43,000 square feet of space, respectively.

* UnumProvident Corp. leased 67,000 square feet of space at Glendale Plaza, 655 N. Central Ave.