Multiple-Use Project Accents High Security : Ground Breaking Set This Week for Center in Rancho Dominguez

High security and exceptional transportation access will be principal features of Rancho Pacifica, a 70-acre mixed-use business park development scheduled for ground breaking Wednesday in Rancho Dominguez by the Trammell Crow Co.

The $70-million, 1.4-million-square-foot project is planned to serve the space needs of the increasing number of firms importing goods into the Southland.

Brian Mott, partner in charge of Trammell Crow’s South Bay office, said Rancho Pacifica will be the only high-security distribution center in the area, with an integrated surveillance system, including controlled single-gate access, 24-hour security staffing and video monitoring.

“This state-of-the-art security system reflects the nature of the users we expect to attract. Many companies market high-dollar inventories, such as electronics and computer components, and seek this type of security,” he said.

Transportation Corridor

The park site, at the northwest corner of Alameda Street and Del Amo Boulevard, lies within a historic Los Angeles County transportation corridor. Alameda is to be improved by the county and designated a state highway, Mott added.

Four freeways surround the property--the Harbor (110) on the west, the Artesia (91) on the north, the Long Beach (710) on the east and the San Diego (405) on the south.

“Transportation accessibility is a key feature of Rancho Pacifica,” Mott said. “This is underscored by the fact that the Los Angeles (San Pedro) and Long Beach ports will soon eclipse New York/New Jersey as the largest deep-water port in the nation.

“Moreover, the new Intermodal Container Transfer Facility, serving both ports and providing international shippers with faster, more efficient and economical container handling, is just two miles away.”

Joint Operation

The facility at 2401 E. Sepulveda Blvd., Long Beach, is a joint operation by the two ports and the Southern Pacific Transportation Co.

Initial construction at the park, costing $45 million, will consist of nearly 700,000 square feet in four structures varying in size from 79,444 to 382,650 square feet, providing traditional distribution and warehouse facilities and an office/service center. All space will be divisible for optimum flexibility, ranging upward from 1,000 square feet. Occupancy is scheduled for the third quarter of the year.

In keeping with Rancho Dominguez history, the developer said California Mission architecture will be carried out in all structures, designed by the Nadel Partnership of Santa Monica. The site, previously owned by Sohio Corp., an oil firm, is the largest developable parcel in the South Bay, according to Mott.

Security Pacific National Bank will finance the project. John A. Alexander Co. of Santa Fe Springs is the contractor, Peridian Group of Irvine is the landscape architect and Thomsen Engineering of Whittier is providing engineering services.