The 150 foot “KTLA”  antenna that stands on the corner of Sunset and Van Ness will soon find a new location just slightly west, as Sunset Bronson Studios will make way for a 14-story tiered office tower, a five-story production facility and a seven-story parking facility  to rise on the busy corner just south of the Sunset Blvd exit off the 101 Freeway.
The new 14 story tower designed by architectural firm Gensler, appears as a set of glass and pre-cast concrete boxes stacked a bit off-kilter, and will be the cornerstone of the new Sunset-Bronson Studios, purchased by Hudson Pacific Properties in 2008 for $130 million. Development plans for the property originally were for two massive, 16-story and 20-story towers, but those plans were scaled back.Â
The 10 acre facility is designed to cater to tenants in the film, entertainment and technology sectors of Hollywood and will still house the  historically landmarked 1920s building that once served Warner Brothers Studios. The Colonial-style old office will be renovated and the new facilities will maintain the same set-back from Sunset Blvd as the facade of the old 1919 structure,  so as not to overwhelm the historic building which is both a Historic Cultural Landmark and on the National Register of Historic Places. The first “talkie” film, “The Jazz Singer”,  was shot on the original lot back in 1927.
The giant antenna that sits on the corner now and is so familiar to those driving north on Van Ness, Â will be moved back to its original location on Sunset Blvd, west of its current location.
The project is currently in the environmental review stage and public hearings to include neighborhood groups are planned for the future. The new development will add to the quickly burgeoning Sunset strip in Hollywood, that includes the newly opened Emerson College-LA to the west, bringing more up-to-date production facilities back to the heart of Hollywood.
