Benaroya, McKernan & O'Keefe Establish Data Center Alliance

SEATTLE, June 28, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The Benaroya Company, Real Property Investors and O'Keefe companies have joined forces to acquire, develop and operate data centers. The three companies have been partners on a variety of commercial projects over the past 25 years. These projects have included the acquisition and development of data centers, high tech business parks, office buildings, industrial parks and shopping centers.

"Our increased focus on data centers is based on the tremendous growth in demand for data center space," said Larry Benaroya, principal of The Benaroya Company. "We recently completed construction of our state of the art LEED Gold Certified South Hill Data Center in Puyallup, Washington. After meeting with many data center users and evaluating the dynamics of the market we have become convinced that there is a significantly larger need and demand."

Mike McKernan, CEO of Real Property Investors states, "The U.S. market is filled with a large number of traditional high quality production facilities which are ideal for adaptive reuse as data centers. Many companies also have existing data centers that no longer satisfy their needs. Our recent acquisition of a former HP data center in Boise is a good example."

"This isn't just about consumer cloud computing," states Tom T. O'Keefe, principal of O'Keefe companies. "There is a tremendous and rapidly increasing need for secure data center space for social media, business and financial, medical, legal and municipal requirements. Computers may be getting smaller but images and multimedia files continue to grow in size. Also, more efficient "green" data center facilities are an absolute requirement for many users while they evaluate their future data center needs."

About The Benaroya Company

Established in 1956, The Benaroya Company (www.benaroya.com) is a leading full-service commercial real estate company active in acquiring, developing and managing superior data center, office, high-tech, retail and industrial properties in prime locations throughout the Pacific Northwest.  Additionally, The Benaroya Company is actively investing in high-tech companies throughout the region.

About Real Property Investors, LLC

Real Property Investors, LLC was founded in 1986 by Mike McKernan in Seattle to acquire, lease and rehabilitate commercial properties in the Pacific Northwest.  Recent high-tech projects completed in association with The Benaroya Company include the acquisition conversion to office and sale of the Jabil Circuit Building in Boise, the acquisition and sale of the former Komatsu silicon chip manufacturing facility in Hillsboro Oregon, the acquisition and repositioning of both the Seattle-area South Hill Data Center and Boise Data Center . Since its inception, Real Property Investors has completed over $500 million in transactions related to data center, high-tech, office, retail and industrial projects.

About O'Keefe companies

O'Keefe companies, a Seattle based company, was founded as O'Keefe Development Corporation in 1986 by Tom T. O'Keefe.  O'Keefe companies develops, acquires, markets and manages a diverse portfolio of data center, office, industrial, retail and multi-family projects.  O'Keefe companies has developed or acquired in excess of four million square feet of commercial real estate projects to date.

SOURCE The Benaroya Company