Apr. 4--A former microchip plant on Puyallup's South Hill will be getting a $45 million makeover courtesy of its Seattle owner who says his firm is on the hunt for at least two major new tenants.

The 92-acre South Hill Business & Technology Center will see its three principal buildings totaling 625,000 square feet refurbished with updated heating and cooling systems, new lobbies with fireplaces and new walkways and entries.

The technology campus' fourth owner, Seattle real estate developers The Benaroya Co., said it's spending the money to demonstrate to prospective tenants that it's committed to transforming the plant into a 21st-century facility.

"You've got to have something to show your prospects," David Vranizan, Benaroya's director of property services, said Friday. "If they know you're committed, then they're more likely to commit."

Benaroya bought the wooded property adjacent to Pierce College's South Hill campus more than 18 months ago from MicroChip Technologies for a reported $30 million.

"This property is really special and extremely unique because of its parklike feel and amenities," said Larry Benaroya, the firm's principal.

MicroChip bought the plant in the late '90s with the idea of spending hundreds of millions of dollars to upgrade it to contemporary standards and to begin chip production there. MicroChip never carried through with its plans because of changes in the marketplace and its own shifting priorities.

The company had bought the plant from Japan's Matsushita, which had bought it from its original builder, Fairchild Semiconductor.

Fairchild occupied the plant for more than a decade, producing computer chips and employing some 900 workers at peak production.

Benaroya's contractor is already gutting the two office structures, one built in 1988 and the other in 1998. The plan is to install new utility and environmental systems and to complete the new lobbies and entranceways. The rest of the buildings would be left in a bare-bones state until tenants stepped up with specific needs.

A tenant, for instance, might need an entire building, said Vranizan. Other tenants might need smaller pieces of square footage.

The Benaroya executive said the company has two companies that expressed strong interest in the property.

The technology campus is reportedly on the short list of sites for a new site for DaVita Inc.'s billing office. The kidney dialysis company is outgrowing its downtown Tacoma office in the former Schoenfeld Furniture Co. building at South 15th Street and Pacific Avenue.

The improvements are designed to lead to energy-saving certifications for all three structures.

The $45 million cost of the rehab project is being financed internally, said Vranizan.

"That's the advantage of working for a company like Benaroya," he said.

The company has built millions of square feet of office and warehouse space in the Puget Sound area. The Seattle Symphony's Benaroya concert hall is named after the family that owns the company.

The City of Puyallup plans to spend new grant money to improve transit and trail connections to the property and to improve the campus' telecommunications connections.

The city obtained money through the Community Economic Revitalization Board to finance those improvements.

Puyallup City Manager Gary McLean said Friday that he believes the combination of Benaroya's upgrades and the city's improvements will attract major employers to the area.

The upgrade, which is creating about 130 construction jobs, is expected to produce office space that could house up to 1,400 workers.

John Gillie: 253-597-8663

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