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Bidding tempo quickens for Laguna Niguel’s Ziggurat as price tops $164 million

September 24, 2024

The tempo of the bidding for Laguna Niguel’s Ziggurat has accelerated.

The government auction’s price hit $164.4 on Monday, Sept. 23 for 89 acres of land with the pyramid-shaped Chet Holifield Federal Building. That’s 135% above the government’s initial $70 million ask.

A new bidding pace began late Friday afternoon, breaking a string of 17 days when the only activity were a pair of bids: one made just minutes before the deadline, followed by an instant response to that move.

Friday morning, an entity dubbed “Bidder #02” on the General Services Administration site increased price by the $300,000 – the minimum increment – just 29 minutes before the auction would have ended. Within seconds, “Bidder #01” responded by boosting the price by another $300,000.

But at 4:55 pm on Friday, Bidder #02 broke what had become their routine and bid a second time in a day. That move bumped up the price another $300,000. Bidder #01 instantly replied with a $300,000 increase.

This was the first time since Aug. 26 that more than two bids had been made in a day. This week also started differently.

Six hours before deadline – not minutes – Bidder #02 at 8:33 a.m. upped the price by $300,000. Bidder #01 countered with another similar increase. Seven hours later, the same back and forth – adding another $600,000 to the price.

This four-bid day made the deadline, 3:03 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 24. It’s all part of an auction which opened June 5. It’s drawn three bidders who have been battling largely with these $300,000 moves.

The original deadline was July 31 – unless the current high bid was topped on a deadline day. If that happens, the auction remains open for another 24 hours. That extension requirement was met July 31, plus all 37 business days afterward – with 26 of those extensions coming through bids entered within one hour of the deadline.

This competition for the Ziggurat site comes as a rare opportunity for large-scale real estate development in south Orange County. The land comes with an eye-catching, million-square-foot office structure designed by the late famed architect William Pereira. The US government no longer needs it.

This is the Ziggurat’s second auction. The first, which required the buyer to preserve the structure, drew no bids. This auction – without that restriction on development – will likely mean demolition of the seven-story, 1-million-square-foot office facility.

Yet any developer will have to win the support of the city of Laguna Niguel to proceed with the Ziggurat site’s next chapter.

Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at [email protected]

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