It's All About Jobs: 5901 Sunset - A Project that Hollywood Needs
September 16, 2016
Two weeks ago, the Los Angeles City Council gave final approval to the 5901 Sunset Blvd. project, proposed by Hudson Pacific Properties. This is a marvelous project for Hollywood and Los Angeles.
The architecturally stunning building tiers back from the residential areas to the north so that the highest portion of the building is along Sunset Blvd. This approximately 300,000-sq.ft., 15-story office building would replace a parking lot that under the 1988 community plan was zoned for commercial uses like a hamburger stand, which no longer represents the development patterns in the area.
The proposed building is just west of the new offices of Netflix and east of Kilroy’s Columbia Square project. Similar in size to the Netflix building, it could bring as many as 1,000 jobs to Hollywood. With thousands of new residents moving here, it makes sense to locate jobs in close proximity to residential areas, so that we can truly encourage a live-work community. It would be one more step in Hollywood’s comeback as the home of the entertainment industry.
The developers, Hudson Pacific Properties, got their start here in Hollywood, and they are committed to this community. They first made their appearance more than a decade ago, when they purchased the Sunset-Gower Studios and saved this historic property as a working studio. Later they purchased the old Tribune lot, now known as Sunset-Bronson Studios. They have sunk millions of dollars into the upgrade of these properties.
They care about Hollywood and they are here to stay. Chris Barton of Hudson Pacific tells me that they want to make this a bellwether building for technology and the environment, and that they will be pursuing a LEED Gold designation. He expects it to be one of the most technologically-advanced office buildings in the country.
They have also agreed to an unrivaled package of community benefits as part of the project, totaling about $1.8-million. They are the first office developer to agree to contribute $1-million toward affordable housing, which will be built within the 13th Council District. They are contributing $50,000 to Helen Bernstein High School, $50,000 to Citizens of the World Charter School and $50,000 to LeConte Middle School, with another $25,000 going toward the Hollywood Central Park. In addition, they are contributing about $400,000 for other improvements in the Hollywood community.
Los Angeles needs jobs and it needs jobs that pay well. Back in June, the L.A. County Economic Development Corporation forecast that between now and 2020, most of the jobs being created in the county will pay below the median wage. At a time when the majority of the new jobs will be in the lower tier, we have a chance to have a facility built that will bring the type of jobs that are needed – jobs that enable people to afford to live here.
Hudson tells me that they are moving forward with plans to break ground in the first quarter of 2017. This is truly a win-win for our community … and yet, there are those seem to want to find fault with everything and may try to stop it with another lawsuit.
The attorney for one of these opponents wrote in her appeal of the project that it would “introduce inconsistency into the land use planning documents for the Hollywood area, will eliminate the possibility of creating a truly pedestrian-friendly section of Sunset Boulevard, and will contribute to the increasing – and unstudied – densification of Hollywood site-by-site.”
She obviously would like people to forget that the City Planning Department spent eight years studying where best to place density. When the City passed its updated Hollywood Community Plan in 2012, this stretch was rezoned to encourage office development. It makes sense, being only a block from the freeway and close to Metro stations, where the impact on surrounding neighborhoods is limited.
The fact is conditions change. In 1988, the only type of business that would have located on that stretch of Sunset Blvd. was a fast-food outlet. Now that the community has turned around and there is an opportunity to build and plan for the future, it is idiocy to say that we should only build what was envisioned in 1988.
As far as creating a pedestrian-friendly boulevard, I’ve noticed a significant increase in the number of pedestrians in the area as the nearby Columbia Square project nears completion. Likewise, this project will do an amazing job of activating the street and bringing pedestrians back to an area where virtually no one walked.
This is a project that is needed and which will improve Hollywood. I wasn’t here in 1988 when the current community plan was adopted, but I was here in 1992 and it was not a pretty picture. To those who are against virtually everything, I would say it is time to stop making excuses to justify your opposition to good projects. If you have valid concerns, let’s hear them. If not, then let good projects that are well-designed and create badly-needed jobs like 5901 Sunset proceed.
_____________________________
Leron Gubler has been serving as the President and CEO of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce for the past 24 years. His tenure since 1992 continues to oversee the great comeback story of Hollywood.
This appeared first in the blog by Leron Gubler "It's All About Jobs" at www.hollywoodchamber.biz.
The architecturally stunning building tiers back from the residential areas to the north so that the highest portion of the building is along Sunset Blvd. This approximately 300,000-sq.ft., 15-story office building would replace a parking lot that under the 1988 community plan was zoned for commercial uses like a hamburger stand, which no longer represents the development patterns in the area.
The proposed building is just west of the new offices of Netflix and east of Kilroy’s Columbia Square project. Similar in size to the Netflix building, it could bring as many as 1,000 jobs to Hollywood. With thousands of new residents moving here, it makes sense to locate jobs in close proximity to residential areas, so that we can truly encourage a live-work community. It would be one more step in Hollywood’s comeback as the home of the entertainment industry.
The developers, Hudson Pacific Properties, got their start here in Hollywood, and they are committed to this community. They first made their appearance more than a decade ago, when they purchased the Sunset-Gower Studios and saved this historic property as a working studio. Later they purchased the old Tribune lot, now known as Sunset-Bronson Studios. They have sunk millions of dollars into the upgrade of these properties.
They care about Hollywood and they are here to stay. Chris Barton of Hudson Pacific tells me that they want to make this a bellwether building for technology and the environment, and that they will be pursuing a LEED Gold designation. He expects it to be one of the most technologically-advanced office buildings in the country.
They have also agreed to an unrivaled package of community benefits as part of the project, totaling about $1.8-million. They are the first office developer to agree to contribute $1-million toward affordable housing, which will be built within the 13th Council District. They are contributing $50,000 to Helen Bernstein High School, $50,000 to Citizens of the World Charter School and $50,000 to LeConte Middle School, with another $25,000 going toward the Hollywood Central Park. In addition, they are contributing about $400,000 for other improvements in the Hollywood community.
Los Angeles needs jobs and it needs jobs that pay well. Back in June, the L.A. County Economic Development Corporation forecast that between now and 2020, most of the jobs being created in the county will pay below the median wage. At a time when the majority of the new jobs will be in the lower tier, we have a chance to have a facility built that will bring the type of jobs that are needed – jobs that enable people to afford to live here.
Hudson tells me that they are moving forward with plans to break ground in the first quarter of 2017. This is truly a win-win for our community … and yet, there are those seem to want to find fault with everything and may try to stop it with another lawsuit.
The attorney for one of these opponents wrote in her appeal of the project that it would “introduce inconsistency into the land use planning documents for the Hollywood area, will eliminate the possibility of creating a truly pedestrian-friendly section of Sunset Boulevard, and will contribute to the increasing – and unstudied – densification of Hollywood site-by-site.”
She obviously would like people to forget that the City Planning Department spent eight years studying where best to place density. When the City passed its updated Hollywood Community Plan in 2012, this stretch was rezoned to encourage office development. It makes sense, being only a block from the freeway and close to Metro stations, where the impact on surrounding neighborhoods is limited.
The fact is conditions change. In 1988, the only type of business that would have located on that stretch of Sunset Blvd. was a fast-food outlet. Now that the community has turned around and there is an opportunity to build and plan for the future, it is idiocy to say that we should only build what was envisioned in 1988.
As far as creating a pedestrian-friendly boulevard, I’ve noticed a significant increase in the number of pedestrians in the area as the nearby Columbia Square project nears completion. Likewise, this project will do an amazing job of activating the street and bringing pedestrians back to an area where virtually no one walked.
This is a project that is needed and which will improve Hollywood. I wasn’t here in 1988 when the current community plan was adopted, but I was here in 1992 and it was not a pretty picture. To those who are against virtually everything, I would say it is time to stop making excuses to justify your opposition to good projects. If you have valid concerns, let’s hear them. If not, then let good projects that are well-designed and create badly-needed jobs like 5901 Sunset proceed.
_____________________________
Leron Gubler has been serving as the President and CEO of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce for the past 24 years. His tenure since 1992 continues to oversee the great comeback story of Hollywood.
This appeared first in the blog by Leron Gubler "It's All About Jobs" at www.hollywoodchamber.biz.
