WARNER CENTER GETS NEW OWNERS BUT NEW BOOST IN GROWTH UNLIKELY HINDERED BY PLAN.

Byline: GREGORY J. WILCOX Real Estate

While Warner Center Properties, the tony West Valley business address, is getting some new owners, not much change is expected for the huge complex.

Between 35,000 and 40,000 people work in Warner Center, and that number should not increase much over the next few years.

Santa Monica-based Douglas Emmett Realty Advisors won the bidding for the six high-rise towers clustered along the south side of Oxnard Street between Canoga Avenue and Owensmouth Street.

Some new tenants will be added to the mix but these buildings are about as big as they can get.

Longtime real estate executive Robert Voit's the Voit Cos., which began developing Warner Center in the mid 1970s, will buy 15 low-rise buildings in Warner Center Business Park between De Soto and Canoga Avenues and Oxnard and Califa streets.

Voit plans to parcel his holdings and sell them off.

This is the mostly likely space for any new additional building but it should not alter the sprawling business park's skyline nor bring a huge influx of new workers.

Voit was a stealth player in a deal that demonstrated Warner Center's attraction to the real estate investment community. About 20 companies expressed interest in the portfolio that is expected to sell for more than $400 million.

But it really should not be a surprise that Voit wanted back into the market or that representatives of the owners - the Alaska Pension Fund and a fund representing Harvard University workers - welcomed the bid.

``We were the most qualified buyer of the bunch. We built the project, we know it inside and out and our game plan is to sell off the pieces,'' said Brian Malliet, Voit's vice president of development and acquisitions. ``It's a great opportunity for us.''

He's not being cocky, just pragmatic.

It's also going to be a good opportunity for buyers who might want to expand the office and industrial footprint in the area.

A preview of what can be accomplished is found in the Warner Center Specific Plan, the official bible of future development.

High-rise development is limited to where it is now.

Tom Henry, the planning deputy for Los Angeles City Councilman Dennis Zine, said that building heights on Voit's expected holdings range between 45 feet to 60 feet.

``Now, if someone wants to do something else they would have to ask for a specific plan exception,'' Henry said.

That could prove to be a trying undertaking and one that arouses strong community opposition.

And right now the plan does not allow for massive amounts of new building.

There is now about 16.5 million square feet of commercial, retail and light industrial space either built or approved.

When the plan was first approved, this space was capped at 35.7 million square feet. However, last summer it was modified and space is now limited to 21.5 million square feet.

Building up to that limit could increase the employee population to 50,000 workers, said Brad Rosenheim, owner of Rosenheim & Associates, a consulting firm in Warner Center.

``There is definite redevelopment opportunities for the square footage and the height,'' he said. ``In (Voit's) area it would still be fairly modest height.''

How many more jobs are created in the area also depends on whether the new development is the more dense office variety or light industrial uses, Rosenheim noted.

And the specific plan provides a moving target, too.

Once the 20-million-square-foot threshold is crossed, or nine years passes, the plan will be reviewed again.