PRESS RELEASES

KPMG Signs Lease at LEED-Gold La Jolla Commons in San Diego

2/18/09

(SAN DIEGO) – The San Diego office of Hines, the international real estate firm, announced today that KPMG LLP, the audit, tax and advisory firm, has signed a long-term lease for approximately 28,710 square feet of office space in La Jolla Commons, the 13-story, 300,000-square-foot office tower, which recently opened in San Diego’s University Towne Centre (UTC) area.

The building, Gold certified in Leadership and Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), is owned by a joint venture between Hines and TIAA-CREF, the national financial services organization. By the end of July, KPMG will relocate from downtown offices to La Jolla Commons, where they will occupy the tower’s fifth and sixth floors. The firm will join other international tenants U.S. Bank, Jones Lang LaSalle and Paul Hastings as the building approaches 50 percent leased only five months after opening.

“This LEED-Gold building met our desire for a facility that is in line with KPMG’s firmwide ‘Green’ initiative to reduce its carbon footprint,” said David Down, managing partner of KPMG’s San Diego office.  “La Jolla Commons also provides a location in the heart of the new financial district and center of business for San Diego, granting us easy access to transportation, the UTC shopping center and the many amenities along La Jolla Village Drive.”   

Designed by DMJM Architects, La Jolla Commons is the first, high-rise multi-tenant office building in California to achieve Gold certification in the LEED program, sponsored by the national, non-profit U.S. Green Building Council. It earned this certification for its first-class construction and state-of-the-art operating systems including a highly energy-efficient, exterior glass curtainwall system and a dual-water pipe system that reduces the use of fresh water by 87 percent.  It is also the first project in San Diego to receive DEES® or “Designed to Earn the ENERGY STAR” status under the EPA’s national ENERGY STAR® program for commercial buildings.  Overall, the building scored in the 92nd percentile for energy efficiency, according to EPA ENERGY STAR standards, equating to a 50 percent reduction in energy use and a 50 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to an average office building.

Ken Boland, Kevin Bender and Herb Hafter of CB Richard Ellis represented KPMG in lease negotiations. Hines was represented by Rick Reeder, David Odmark and Brett Ward of Grubb & Ellis|BRE Commercial, the exclusive leasing team for the project.

"We are thrilled with the building’s leasing velocity which continues to gain momentum as San Diego businesses recognize the value that La Jolla Commons brings to an organization. KPMG is a premier, international firm that helps companies manage risk and sustain performance during turbulent times, so they understand value," said Hines Vice President and Partner Paul Twardowski.  “We’re proud to be the greenest multi-tenant high-rise office building in California, but it’s really about how those benefits translate into financial savings for our tenants.”

 La Jolla Commons is close to Interstate 805 off of La Jolla Village Drive. In addition to the office tower, the La Jolla Commons campus is also planned to offer over two acres of park area as well as a four-star hotel. Planned on-campus amenities include a restaurant, bar, deli, spa, gym and meeting space.  For leasing information on La Jolla Commons Office Tower, call 858/546-5400 or visit www.ljcommons.com.

KPMG LLP, the audit, tax and advisory firm (www.us.kpmg.com), is the U.S. member firm of KPMG International. KPMG International’s member firms have 137,000 professionals, including more than 7,600 partners, in 144 countries.

TIAA-CREF (www.tiaa-cref.org) is a national financial services organization and the leading provider of retirement services in the academic, research, medical and cultural fields with more than $435 billion in combined assets under management.  TIAA-CREF Global Real Estate is one of America's largest institutional real estate investors in the United States, with an approximate $70 billion global portfolio of direct and indirect investments.

Hines (www.hines.com) is a privately owned real estate firm involved in real estate investment, development and property management worldwide. The Hines portfolio of projects underway, completed, acquired and managed for third parties includes more than 1,100 properties representing approximately 457 million square feet of office, residential, mixed-use, industrial, hotel, medical, retail and sports facilities, as well as large, master-planned communities and land developments. In San Diego, Hines owns and manages 2.3 million square feet, including PETCO Park, La Jolla Commons, and 525 B Street in downtown San Diego. With offices in more than 100 cities in 16 countries, and controlled assets valued at approximately $25.6 billion, Hines is one of the largest real estate organizations in the world. Hines is the most prolific ‘green’ developer and currently has 119 new and existing buildings (98 projects), representing over 60 million square feet, that have been certified, pre-certified or registered with the U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) LEED® Green Building Rating System.