Amazon Pays $63M for OC Register’s Former Printing Site
The king of e-commerce plans to demolish the property and create another last-mile distribution site spanning more than 112,000 square feet
By Greg Cornfield November 2, 2020 1:20 pm
reprints
Amazon just keeps growing.
The e-commerce king acquired the Orange County Register’s former printing location, and plans to demolish it and build a 112,485-square-foot last-mile distribution warehouse in Santa Ana, just south of Anaheim. Amazon (AMZN) paid $63.2 million to developer Michael Harrah for the property, The Press-Enterprise reported.
In the deal, Amazon took 16.5 acres of the 20-acre property that Harrah acquired for $61 million. Harrah retains the building that previously was the publication’s newsroom, which is still for sale or lease. Meanwhile, Amazon submitted plans to the city of Santa Ana to develop its industrial site.
It’s located in a federally designated opportunity zone, which stems from the tax overhaul in 2017, and allows investors the chance to defer capital gains taxes. Harrah previously planned to create a massive mixed-use complex with residential towers, offices and retail developments, including a 37-story tower called One Broadway Plaza. It was part of his now-defunct “mini-city” plan, which would stretch to the vacant Orange County Register site on Grand Avenue.
Amazon is famously thriving — even more so than usual — thanks in large part to the pandemic, and the company has been on a leasing spree around the country. Just today, Commercial Observer reported that Amazon signed another long-term lease for almost 312,000 square feet in Brooklyn. The company is also redeveloping another property into a last-mile location in Mission Viejo, about 17 miles from Santa Ana. And, earlier this year, Amazon signed for 155,700 square feet in the northwest region of Los Angeles County.
