Innovative, determined marketing  sees the 52-unit, 77,400 sq. ft. project through the challenges of the  Great Recession of 2008-2009

San  Jose, Calif., June 8, 2011 – When Borelli Investment Company acquired an REO  (bank-owned) two, building, two-story, 77,400 sq. ft. R&D/manufacturing  complex located on Junction Avenue near the Trimble Road exit on I-880 back in  2005, creating an office condo complex seemed simple enough.  But with the deepest recession in more than  three-quarters of a century lurking right around the corner, there would be  nothing simple about the Junction Office Center story.

With $10 million in debt and equity funding raised  from an investment group, the project started as expected.

Borelli completely renovated the two  buildings, converting them into high-quality office condos ranging from 750 to  3,000 sq. ft.  The refurbishing included  stunning glass lines with 48 new window openings, new roofs, new heating and  air conditioning units, extensive landscaping, awning covered entrances to  formal lobbies, completely redone interiors, large multi-stalled restrooms, an  on-site fitness facility, common conference room, all the necessary ADA  improvements, and well-appointed suites with carpeting, finished walls and  coffee bars.

“Our first office condo sales closed just before the  end of the year,” said Ralph Borelli, company chairman.  “The following two years were also strong, so  that by the end of 2007, we only had 15 or so units left.”

Responding to the Recession

But  off course, the recession arrived in 2008.   Borelli responded with innovative marketing programs designed to  maintain forward momentum, even if dramatically slowed.  Marketing included a creative mix of  traditional media – brochures, postcards, newsletters, and print ads – together  with “new” media such as a project-specific micro-web site, e-mail blasts, a  lighthearted informational blog that attracted a steady following, and TEAM Junction – a business-acceleration  group run by a certified chairperson from Vistage International, known as the  leading organization for CEOs in the world.           It took awhile and required adjusting condo sales  prices to conform to new market realities, but sales inched forward.  The final sale of a 1,943 sq. ft. unit closed  in May – approximately 5 1/2 years after the first sale.

“Many other developers might have walked away from  Junction Office Center,” Borelli remarked.   “We take our responsibilities seriously – both to our investors and to  the condo owners – to finish the project the way it was intended.  While the returns to investors were obviously  scaled back somewhat, with hard work, we brought the project to a successful  completion.”

For information about other office condo  opportunities through Borelli in Silicon Valley, contact Anna Mcquillan Rose,  at anna@borelli.com, or call (408) 770-1205.

$2.5 million renovation and aggressive marketing campaign stabilize aging asset in a down market – lifting occupancy from 35% to 95%

Contact
Ralph Borelli, Chairman
Borelli Investment Company
2051 Junction Avenue #100
San Jose, CA 95131
Ph: 408.453-4700
ralph@borelli.com

Fremont,Calif.,May 27, 2011- Borelli Investment Company has offeredFremontBusinessPark- a three-building, two-story, 120,000 sq. ft. office complex near the Pacific Commons shopping center in southernFremont- for sale for $13.4 million. Once a buyer is found and the transaction closes, that will complete a remarkable turnaround in today’s challenging economy for an asset that was significantly distressed just 18 months ago.

In mid 2009, company chairman Ralph N. Borelli convinced the office complex’s ownership group to invest additional capital at a time when few were taking that risk. The sweeping $2.5 million renovation modernized both interiors and exteriors and included professional entries with tiled floors, bright corridors with new carpets, upgraded restrooms with granite countertops, energy efficient and safer LED exterior lighting, an on-site fitness facility, common conference room, and creation of many new spaces including micro-offices as small as 375 sq. ft. Fremont Business Park also offers tenants an affordably priced, high-speed, fiber optic Internet service and free membership in TEAM Christy, business-acceleration and mentoring group led by Vistage International.

With the makeover complete, Borelli Investment Company launched an aggressive marketing effort that included a micro-web site with an active and well-read blog, marketing collateral, e-mail updates to prospects, a blog posting or e-mail each time a new tenant signed, and significant outreach to the city ofFremontand local brokers. Occupancy soared, with 60 transactions over an 18-month period, increasing from a low of 35% to the complex’s current 95%. Add in the complex’s prime location near I-880, shopping and services, and the Fremont Auto Mall – and suddenly,FremontBusinessParkis a hot property.

“We’ve worked hard to enhance and stabilize this asset in an exceedingly difficult environment,” said Borelli. “It required investor faith to provide an influx of funds – together with creative marketing and leasing – but it has allowed us to time the sales offering for when it looks like real estate may be ready to move again – rather than losing time trying to rejuvenate the property after the fact.” Borelli further noted that the $13.4 million sales price is 40% of what it would cost to build a similar complex from the ground up in today’s market.FremontBusinessParkis located at 42840 and42808 Christy Streetand42501 Albrae StreetinFremont.

For information related to the sale, contact Buddy Parsons, president of Borelli Investment Company, at buddy@borelli.com, or call (408) 453-4700.

Borelli Investment Company launches Building Business Network
at three office complexes to create critical alliances, encourage
discussion of common challenges and sharing of creative ideas, and
enhance business networking and synergy among owners and tenants.

San Jose,Calif.,March 29, 2010— While the economy is improving, it is clear things have not returned to “normal”. In fact, it is increasingly looking like business might not ever return to what we once thought of as “normal”. Instead, the challenging environment in which businesses operate today may be viewed as the “new normal”. It results in a business climate that is demanding and unforgiving — where success requires innovative thinking, a keen eye on costs, and the ability to adapt and quickly take advantage of good opportunities when they come along.

Winning in this “new normal” is tough enough with ample support — but for small businesses that are going it alone, long-term success may seem impossible at times. Recognizing this, Borelli Investment Company — a 55-year-old commercial real estate firm that specializes in leasing office space and selling office condos to smaller businesses — has created the Building Business Network, informal business networking groups associated with three of the projects it owns or markets: Junction Office Center, Club Auto Sport, and Fremont Business Park at Christy Street.

“Borelli Investment Company has seen a lot of ups and downs in the economy over the past 5 ½ decades,” said Ralph Borelli, chairman of Borelli Investment Company and son of the founder, his father Nelo. “We have learned two things through our experience in all kinds of business climates. First,Northern Californiain general andSilicon Valleyspecifically is a great place in which to do business — with the ability to rebound and reinvent itself after every decline. And second, if a business just hunkers down and waits for things to get better — it may not survive. HP has it right with its slogan ‘Invent’. One has to innovate for success.”

TEAM Club Auto Sport Laps the Field

In mid-2009, in the midst of one of the deepest recessions in history, the TEAM concept was originated at Club Auto Sport, a 120,000 sq. ft. office complex in North San Jose that includes car condos and a club for auto enthusiasts, as well as a dynamic business community and events center. TEAM Club Auto Sport was created to serve the diverse group of businesses — both automotive and non-automotive — that were locating within the facility.

Among the group’s many benefits are:

• Regular meetings with TEAM Club Auto Sport members and Club Auto Sport’s marketing professionals — to discuss common challenges and brainstorm creative solutions
• Unique business networking and advertising co-op opportunities
• Guidance in how to apply the latest social networking methods to create a business advantage
• Invitations to the club’s exclusive Fast Track U series of business workshops on topics from sound accounting practices to effective wealth planning
• The opportunity to contribute to TEAM Club Auto Sport’s blog to drive customers to their own web sites
• Individual mentoring, if desired
• Access to professional marketing resources

“Within my first two months as part of TEAM Club Auto Sport, I was introduced to a development family whom I now represent in the development of a 90-room hotel project in Capitola,” said Alex L. Ingram of Ingram & Associates, Inc., a facilities planning and construction management firm. “This project will provide significant fee income for me.”

“By being at Club Auto Sport, I have exceeded my business goals — and the new relationships I’ve made are creating tremendous business opportunities for us,” added Baltazar Martinez of South Valley Landscape Construction.

Borelli Investment Company launches Building Business Network at three office complexes to create critical alliances, encourage discussion of common challenges and sharing of creative ideas, and enhance business networking and synergy among owners and tenants.

San Jose, Calif., March 29, 2010 — While the economy is improving, it is clear things have not returned to “normal”.   In fact, it is increasingly looking like business might not ever return to what we once thought of as “normal”.  Instead, the challenging environment in which businesses operate today may be viewed as the “new normal”.  It results in a business climate that is demanding and unforgiving — where success requires innovative thinking, a keen eye on costs, and the ability to adapt and quickly take advantage of good opportunities when they come along.

Winning in this “new normal” is tough enough with ample support — but for small businesses that are going it alone, long-term success may seem impossible at times.  Recognizing this, Borelli Investment Company — a 55-year-old commercial real estate firm that specializes in leasing office space and selling office condos to smaller businesses — has created the Building Business Network, informal business networking groups associated with three of the projects it owns or markets: Junction Office Center, Club Auto Sport, and Fremont Business Park at Christy Street.

“Borelli Investment Company has seen a lot of ups and downs in the economy over the past 5 ½ decades,” said Ralph Borelli, chairman of Borelli Investment Company and son of the founder, his father Nelo.  “We have learned two things through our experience in all kinds of business climates. First, Northern California in general and Silicon Valley specifically is a great place in which to do business — with the ability to rebound and reinvent itself after every decline.  And second, if a business just hunkers down and waits for things to get better — it may not survive.  HP has it right with its slogan ‘Invent’.  One has to innovate for success.”

TEAM Club Auto Sport Laps the Field

In mid-2009, in the midst of one of the deepest recessions in history, the TEAM concept was originated at Club Auto Sport, a 120,000 sq. ft. office complex in North San Jose that includes car condos and a club for auto enthusiasts, as well as a dynamic business community and events center. TEAM Club Auto Sport was created to serve the diverse group of businesses — both automotive and non-automotive — that were locating within the facility.

Among the group’s many benefits are:

• Regular meetings with TEAM Club Auto Sport members and Club Auto Sport’s marketing professionals — to discuss common challenges and brainstorm creative solutions
• Unique business networking and advertising co-op opportunities
• Guidance in how to apply the latest social networking methods to create a business advantage
• Invitations to the club’s exclusive Fast Track U series of business workshops on topics from sound accounting practices to effective wealth planning
• The opportunity to contribute to TEAM Club Auto Sport’s blog to drive customers to their own web sites
• Individual mentoring, if desired
• Access to professional marketing resources

 

“Within my first two months as part of TEAM Club Auto Sport, I was introduced to a development family whom I now represent in the development of a 90-room hotel project in Capitola,” said Alex L. Ingram of Ingram & Associates, Inc., a facilities planning and construction management firm.  “This project will provide significant fee income for me.”

“By being at Club Auto Sport, I have exceeded my business goals — and the new relationships I’ve made are creating tremendous business opportunities for us,” added Baltazar Martinez of South Valley Landscape Construction.

TEAM Concept Expands to Two More Office Complexes

With the TEAM concept proven at Club Auto Sport, Borelli is now adding Junction Office Center and Fremont Business Park at Christy Street to the Building Business Network. TEAM Junction and TEAM Christy Street are already attracting a lot of interest from the owners and tenants in the two buildings.

Junction Office Center is a two-building, 77,400 sq. ft. complex containing 52 office condos, of which only four remain.  Closeout pricing is being offered on the final four condo units, increasing buyer interest. TEAM Junction held its first meeting in March with more than one-third of the owners and tenants in attendance.

Fremont Business Park is a three-building 120,000 sq. ft. complex near I-880 and Auto Mall Parkway at the gateway to Silicon Valley in southern Fremont.  The office suites are tailored to the needs of smaller businesses, ranging in size from 400 – 10,000 sq. ft. and feature the fastest fiber optic Internet speeds in Fremont of up to 100 Mbps or more — with wireless connections.  TEAM Christy Street will hold its first meeting shortly after its official re-opening in April following a $2 million renovation.

“It’s very easy to move into an office building with 50 or 100 fellow owners or tenants, and yet feel completely alone,” remarked Tom Purtell, chief operating officer at Borelli Investment Company.  “TEAM  Junction and TEAM  Christy Street will help businesses in the two buildings establish connections and create synergy.  Companies can market products and services to one another, participate in co-op advertising, and most importantly, learn from others in the group — emulating the successes and avoiding the failures.”

Added Borelli, “The businesses we’ve talked to at the three buildings are really excited about the concept,” he noted.  “It seems so simple — and yet to our knowledge, it hasn’t been tried before in Silicon Valley.  The Building Business Network is proving to not only be a big benefit for the participants, but also an important tool for us in marketing the space in our buildings.”

Borelli Investment Company is one of the oldest commercial real estate firms in the Santa Clara Valley.  The company provides a full range of commercial real estate services—from development and construction management to land sales and consulting for sales and leasing. More information about Borelli Investment Company’s services may be obtained by calling (408) 453-4700 or visiting www.borelli.com.

Contact: Buddy Parsons Borelli Investment Company 2051 Junction Avenue, Suite 100 San Jose, CA 95131 Ph: 408.453.4700 Fax: 408.453.4636 E-mail: buddy@borelli.com

http://www.borelli.com

Club Auto Sport Celebrates the Official Groundbreaking

Club Auto Sport—a unique condominium facility that combines safe, secure car storage with an exclusive club for racing and auto enthusiasts — held its groundbreaking at 521 Charcot Avenue in San Jose on October 4th, 2007. Several hundred car collectors, motor sports fans, city officials, and other dignitaries attended the catered event planned by Borelli Investment Company in conjunction with the groundbreaking. The unique two-building, 120,000 square foot commercial condominium complex offers 60 purpose — built units from 800 to 10,000 square feet — plus a 10,000 square foot showroom as well as banquet and hospitality area that’s ideal for hosting charitable functions. Club Auto Sport members will be able to be part of many club events and activities, as well as having access to time-saving services related to their cars. Completion and occupancy is expected by late spring.