Clear Capital signs with Truckee airport; 100-125 jobs to stay local (updated)

TRUCKEE, Calif. — After years of circling the runway and last week getting the all clear, Clear Capital and its 100-125 local jobs have decided to land at the Truckee Tahoe Airport.

Kevin Marshall, president of the real estate valuations and analytics company that’s called Truckee home since forming in 2001, signed a construction and lease agreement with the airport district Tuesday afternoon.

Clear Capital will pay rent of $1.27 per square foot a month to the district for a roughly 10,000-square-foot office building on airport property. Originally, the company requested a rate of $1.20.

The $1.27 rate does not include various maintenance charges, gas and electric fees, and possessory interest taxes, which airport officials estimate will cost an additional 46 cents per square foot a month.

“The rate is a very important factor, but is just one of many factors that we had to consider before agreeing to the higher-than-anticipated rate proposed,” Marshall said. “... One, maintaining two locations (as opposed to moving everyone to Reno) is more expensive for us, as we have to duplicate many systems and staff. Two, no matter what we did in Truckee, we knew it was going to be more expensive for us than as if we had everyone in Reno.

“We were not asking anyone to beat our Reno price. The question we had to answer was: ‘How much more can we afford before it becomes an unhealthy burden to keep some staff in Truckee?’”

When asked what rates Clear Capital currently pays in Truckee’s Pioneer Commerce Center and will pay in Reno, Marshall said both leases are private agreements, and therefore, details cannot be shared.

‘HELP JOBS IN TRUCKEE’

The lease term for the new Truckee building, proposed on the corner of Airport Road and Chandelle Way, is for 10 years, commencing Aug. 1, 2016, with the option for Clear Capital to leave after seven years.

In that scenario, Clear Capital must give the airport district 270 days notice it’s leaving at the end of year seven, and pay a year’s worth of rent.

During that time, the district would search for a new tenant.

The airport board of directors approved the construction and lease agreements Feb. 11.

“We’re excited about it,” Kevin Smith, TTAD general manager, said Tuesday. “We think it’s going to be a great partnership.”

Marshall added that he believes the arrangement will be a “win-win” for both parties.

“The airport (is) providing a way to help jobs in Truckee, and they are doing it in a financially sound manner. The win for Clear Capital is for our staff in Truckee/Tahoe, who can continue to live, work and play (here), and its financial health for Clear Capital,” he said. “We don’t have to move all the jobs to Reno. We can keep a significant number here.”

The move keeps 100 to 125 jobs in the area, he added.

AIRPORT FOOTING BILL UP FRONT

As for next steps, Smith said the airport district will work on designs and submitting a development application to Nevada County for site approval and construction.

The goal is to break ground on the building by Oct. 15, with Clear Capital occupying the space in August 2016, he said.

The project is estimated to cost $3.46 million, an expense that would be covered up front by airport district reserves.

Late last year, Clear Capital announced it would relocate its main headquarters and about 125 employees from Truckee to a downtown Reno office in March 2015.

The remainder of Clear Capital’s current staff will continue to work out of its campus at 10875 Pioneer Trail in Truckee until the company’s lease expires in August 2016.

Clear Capital first approached the airport district in 2012 on leasing airport property for the purpose of housing the company.