By Jack Stubbs
The city of Bothell—located roughly fifteen miles north of downtown Seattle—to some may seem as an unlikely corporate campus destination, but it has a growing life sciences industry. And a recent sale adjacent to Canyon Park Business Center, a 17-building Class A complex, demonstrates that investor interest in the city bordering King and Snohomish Counties continues.
On June 7th, roughly seven acres of vacant land sold for $14 million, according to Snohomish County records. The buyer was Toll Bros., Inc., an entity based in Kirkland. The seller was Canyon Park Investment Corporation, which shares the same address as Bellevue-based real estate investment company MJS Investors. The transaction was recorded on June 10th.
The sale was for two parcel of undeveloped vacant land totaling just under seven acres, according to public documents. Located at the corner of 220th St. SE and 23rd Dr. SE—about four miles north of downtown Bothell—the parcels are immediately adjacent to the 632,591 square foot Canyon Park Business Center, which is located at 22021 20th Avenue SE.
It is not entirely clear what plans the buyer has for the recently-acquired parcels. However, a property description on the seller’s web site describes plans for an in-the-works project: MJS is currently processing entitlements through the City of Bothell for Bothell Townhomes, a 118-unit for-sale townhome project in the Canyon Park region of the city.
The design of the in-the-works project will look to capitalize on its location near downtown Bothell and surrounding areas. “The future residents [of Bothell Townhomes] will benefit from multiple transit options within walking distance to make for an easy commute to local employment centers,” the web site states. “A carefully designed site plan with ample open space along with innovative architecture and floor plans make this community unique.”
The Canyon Park area of Bothell has seen some transaction activity in recent quarters. In November 2018, PCCP LLC announced that it had formed a joint venture with SteelWave to acquire Canyon Park Business Center—a property that is 99 percent occupied and consists of 13 Class A flex/office buildings totaling 450,961 square feet, and four net-leased, Class A, life science lab and data center buildings totaling 181,630 square feet—for $145.5 million, or approximately $230 per square foot.
In early September 2018, demand in the city’s life-sciences sector was reaffirmed when Seattle Genetics signed a nearly 207,000 square foot lease across three buildings at the four-building,206,771 square foot Canyon Park Commons campus, which is located at 2500, 2530 and 2300 223rd St. SE.
There have been a number of transactions in Bothell since first quarter 2018, indicating that the Canyon Park area continues to be seen as a desirable location. In mid-March 2018, three parcels of vacant land comprising roughly 17 acres (and including three research and development buildings totaling approximately 150,000 square feet) sold for $21.5 million. CP Investment 1 LLC acquired the three-parcel property—located at 21516 23rd Dr. SE. approximately one mile north of Canyon Park Commons—from Seattle-based Immunex Corporation.
MJS Investors’ Real Estate division seeks opportunities to invest in a variety of properties from raw land to existing assets, with over 50 years of experience in various asset classes including residential/multifamily, mixed-use, retail, office and industrial, according to the company’s web site.
