New Leases Increase San Rafael Corporate Center's Occupancy Rate to 85 Percent

Thanks to several new leases, the San Rafael Corporate Center will have an approximate 85 percent occupancy rate, according to

Last week, Seagate Properties announced that Novato-based company BioMarin Pharmaceutical, Inc. will be moving in to the 770 and 790 Lindaro  St. addresses on April 15. Other recent tenants include the mobile banking company Clairmail and Manifest Marketing at 781 Lincoln Ave.

With the new companies moving in and a possible new tenant that is still negotiating a lease, the occupancy rate of the San Rafael Corporate Center could become 90 percent, according to Seagate Properties President Wick Polite.

“We’re seeing this as having a pretty substantial impact on the vacancy rate in San Rafael, as well as a possibility to create jobs,” Polite said.

San Rafael’s commercial vacancy rate currently lingers between 8 and 10 percent, according to Mayor Gary Phillips.

 “It’s great news that BioMarin is coming to town,” said Phillips at a Citizen’s Advisory Committee meeting, noting that this lease and the announcement of the Terrapin Crossroads music venue moving in to Seafood Peddler will help bolster the local economy.

BioMarin, which plans to make the San Rafael location their corporate headquarters, will be occupying 120,383 square feet of office space in the four-story building at 770 Lindaro St. and on two floors at 790 Lindaro St. The move will bring over 350 employees, according to spokesman Bob Purcell.

“We did look in other places throughout the Bay Area, but this space was the most attractive and provided the best opportunity for our expansion,” Purcell said.

BioMarin is a publicly traded multinational biopharmaceutical company that specializes in providing treatments to patients with rare genetic diseases. The company grew from 250 employees in 2004 to over 1,000 worldwide, with around 800 from Marin, according to Purcell.

Clairmail occupies one floor at 781 Lincoln Ave. and Manifest Marketing is set to move in to a 2,400-square-foot space, Polite said.

Seagate Properties purchased the 13-acre site in August 2007. At the time, the site consisted of two office buildings totaling 158,000 square feet.

A second phase of the project was completed in March of 2010, which consisted of two four-story office buildings, adding another 155,000 square feet to the site.

A third and final phase of the development plan will add five office buildings totaling over 400,000 square feet and two parking structures, which will begin construction in 2015.