Harbor leasing agent presents market data, phone‑tracking analytics and tenant prospects for Redondo Beach waterfront

Brian Campbell, the city’s contracted waterfront leasing agent with BC Urban, told the Redondo Beach Harbor Commission that vacancies at Pier Plaza and waterfront retail have stabilized but rental growth lags once inflation is factored in, and he outlined how new data tools and marketing are being used to recruit tenants.

Campbell opened the presentation by identifying himself: “I’m Brian Campbell with BC Urban. I’ve been in this business almost exclusively leasing for about 40 years now,” and described a package of market reports and live analytics he supplied to city staff and commissioners. He asked that the commission receive and file the presentation; commissioners voted to do so.

The presentation summarized three data streams the leasing team uses: national/submarket listings from CoStar, aerial/drone imagery the firm produces for property management and marketing, and Placer AI phone‑tracking analytics the firm licensed for California. Campbell said the drone work helps with roof and HVAC surveys and with occasional marine mammal sightings; he connected the drone use to tenant marketing and maintenance risk reduction.

Why it matters: the commission said it wants the waterfront to remain active and generate parking and sales tax revenue for the city; the leasing approach prioritized occupancy and foot traffic over maximizing theoretical property values, reflecting the city’s interest in steady cash flow and a full project.

Key facts from the presentation

- Vacancy and rents: Campbell said Pier Plaza occupancy fluctuates around about 88%–91% and that retail handled by the leasing team is effectively fully leased, while office and mall submarkets show mixed performance. He noted CoStar data showing modest headline rental increases over five years (about 6.1%), but said the picture is worse once adjusted for inflation.

- Placer AI analytics: Campbell showed geo‑fenced visitor data for the newly opened California Surf Club (May 1–Aug. 4 sample). He reported an early visit frequency of about 1.76 visits per device and an average dwell time near 140 minutes for Surf Club visitors in that six‑week sample, and said the Surf Club drew a concentrated South Bay audience. He compared that to the broader waterfront area, which registered substantially higher aggregate visits in the same window (Campbell displayed a side‑by‑side showing roughly 53,000 visits for Surf Club vs. 829,000 for the broader waterfront area in the slides he provided to commissioners).

- Tenant prospects and pipeline: Campbell described preliminary discussions for the former Fun Factory (about 29,550 square feet), including interest from mixed‑use bowling/restaurant/sports concepts. He said the city and leasing team must supply site remediation and infrastructure before certain uses would be feasible. He also reported several recent lease transactions: Scholl Brewery has leased the Dinghy Deli space and a music venue (Deep End Live) is taking space in the landing’s former Brixton unit; two other leases were executed in Pier Plaza.

- Leasing strategy: Campbell said the team prioritizes occupancy and “a full project” to support the waterfront vibe and ancillary revenues such as parking. He described lease terms that preserve city flexibility (for example, leases that give the city the ability to terminate with 12 months’ notice) and acknowledged those terms can deter some large corporate tenants with standard corporate lease demands.

- Additional items: Campbell discussed marketing collateral (a leasing website and aerial videos), free tenant reports the leasing team will run on request, and the team’s willingness to provide Placer AI snapshots to tenants at no charge to help them benchmark visitor demographics and timing.

Commission action and next steps

The Harbor Commission voted to receive and file the leasing overview and marketing materials presented by BC Urban. Campbell offered to brief the commission again as new data or proposals emerge and to run deeper Placer AI reports for city staff and tenants on request.

Campbell also noted operational items that will affect leasing prospects: LA County permitting requirements (he cited a restaurant tenant still working through LA County Health approvals), the city’s need to fund or approve infrastructure work for larger redevelopment sites, and litigation that previously slowed leasing at Pier Plaza.

Ending: The commission placed the materials on record and asked staff and the leasing agent to continue negotiations for the Fun Factory site, provide follow‑up Placer AI briefings as requested, and keep the commission updated on pending permits and infrastructure constraints.