Amazon’s Latest Pasadena Acquisition Signals Tech Giant’s Growing Presence

[UPDATED] Amazon has acquired an industrial property in East Pasadena for $78.8 million, a transaction that more than doubled the building’s value in about four years and underscores the tech giant’s expanding presence in the region.

The two-story building at 2964 Bradley Street spans approximately 168,000 square feet and sits along the 210 freeway corridor, an area increasingly attractive to technology and data-infrastructure companies. Amazon paid roughly $469 per square foot — a premium price point for flex industrial space that reflects the company’s willingness to invest in urban locations near research institutions.

The seller, El Segundo-based Alvarez & Marsal Capital Real Estate, purchased the property from Graymark Capital in early 2021 for $33 million, according to property records first reported by The Real Deal. The sale to Amazon represents a gain of approximately 139 percent in about four years.

Amazon has not disclosed its intended use for the site. The acquisition, however, aligns with a broader corporate push into cloud infrastructure and data-center development. Within the past month alone, the company announced plans to invest roughly $15 billion in new data-center facilities across Northern Indiana and committed up to $50 billion for artificial-intelligence infrastructure serving federal government agencies, according to Data Center Dynamics.

Existing Amazon Presence in Pasadena

The Bradley Street purchase adds to Amazon’s existing footprint in the city. The company already operates the AWS Center for Quantum Computing, a research facility built in partnership with Caltech that opened in 2021. That 21,000-square-foot building, located on the Caltech campus, houses teams working to develop fault-tolerant quantum computers.

The new acquisition sits within a short drive of Caltech and near other research-and-development facilities, positioning it within an emerging cluster of digital infrastructure and tech-related uses along the 210 corridor.

Previous Tenants and Building History

The property has historically served aerospace and defense companies. Thales, the multinational defense contractor, previously operated at the address, according to business directory records. Whether any legacy tenants remain in the building could not be independently confirmed.

The building also carries an alternate address of 3100 New York Drive and is characterized as a creative office and industrial hybrid facility.

Market Context

The transaction occurs against a backdrop of diverging commercial real estate trends in the region. Office vacancy rates in the greater Pasadena area have climbed above 24 percent amid ongoing shifts in workplace patterns, according to recent market data cited by the Commercial Observer. Industrial space, by contrast, remains in high demand — vacancy in the San Gabriel Valley stood at just 3.2 percent in the third quarter of 2025, the tightest rate in the greater Los Angeles region.

Amazon’s willingness to pay a premium for urban infill industrial space reflects a broader industry pattern: tech companies are prioritizing proximity to talent and research institutions over the cost savings of remote suburban campuses.