Paramount hopes to build huge office tower on its Hollywood lot; studio won't talk but Woo aide says plan's afoot.Paramount hopes to build huge office tower on its Hollywood lot Studio won't talk, but Woo aide says plan's afoot Paramount Pictures apparently plans to build the largest office project in Hollywood since the 300,000-square-foot Hollywood Center building was built in 1972, the Business Journal has learned. The Paramount building, which is in "the early master planning stage," could be as large as 250,000 square feet according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. City Councilman Michael Woo's office. "We have talked to people at Paramount about a 250,000-square-foot office building," said Eric Roth, a planning deputy at Woo's office. In recent years, Paramount has explored the possibility of gaining approval to build above its current 60-foot height limitation on office buildings. It has proposed a 150-foot-high, 12-to 15-story office tower for the 55-acre Paramount lot. Any office project could include the demolition of the Western Costume Co. building, a 65-year-old landmark. Work on moving the building's prized costume and prop collection began last month, to spacious storage facilities in North Hollywood. Paramount owns the building. Paramount is steadfastedly refusing comment on any current plans for studio expansion, stating that its plans are too preliminary to discuss. But Woo, the councilman who has seen his redevelopment project for downtown Hollywood slip into neutral in recent months, is ebullient about the prospects of new glitter for the historic Paramount studio, which has cranked out movies on the same site since the 1920s. Paramount is the last major studio to stick with Hollywood throughout its troubled times, as other studios skipped to the San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. and the Westside. "We welcome the Paramount expansion," Woo said. "This is the type of project we welcome to Hollywood. The expansion will create an additional demand for sound recording projects, film laboratories and other entertainment businesses in Hollywood to support an expanded Paramount facility." An environmental impact report is being prepared on the Western Costume Building. Deborah Rosen, a spokesman for Paramount Pictures, said that no concrete plans for the Western Costume building had been developed. Roth said that recent conversations with the studio centered on a 250,000-square-foot building. He said that he has also had talks with Paramount regarding parking, as Paramount tries "to cope with running a major studio" in an aging part of town that is also densely populated pop·u·late tr.v. pop·u·lat·ed, pop·u·lat·ing, pop·u·lates 1. To supply with inhabitants, as by colonization; people. 2. . According to a company source, architect interviews are under way. Woo said Paramount is planning the office building because it wants to bring additional employees from the New York City New York City: see New York, city. New York City City (pop., 2000: 8,008,278), southeastern New York, at the mouth of the Hudson River. The largest city in the U.S. headquarters of Paramount Communications Paramount Communications Media and communications corporation. It was founded (as Paramount Pictures Corp.) by W. W. Hodkinson in 1914 as a film distributor. It became a motion-picture company two years later and won attention with stars such as Mary Pickford, Gloria Inc. into the Hollywood fold. Jerry Sherman, vice president of corporate communications Corporate communications is the process of facilitating information and knowledge exchanges with internal and key external groups and individuals that have a direct relationship with an enterprise. at Paramount Communications, said that he knew of no such relocations plans at the $3 billion, 12,000-employee Paramount Communications parent. But some additional employees from the film group would be brought to the Hollywood lot, if the studio stretches out, according to a Paramount Pictures source. "(Paramount Communications chairman) Martin Davis' roots are in Brooklyn, so I'd imagine that he would want to maintain strong ties here in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of ," Sherman said. Paramount has quietly assembled property around its Hollywood studio, in hopes that it can put together a project. Hollywood real estate broker Bruce Canfield can·field n. Games A form of solitaire. [After Richard Albert Canfield (1855-1914), American gambler.] Noun 1. , president of The Canfield Co., has worked with Paramount on some Melrose Avenue Melrose Avenue is a well-known Los Angeles street that starts from Santa Monica Boulevard at the border between Beverly Hills and West Hollywood and ends at Hoover Street in Silver Lake. Melrose runs north of Beverly Boulevard and south of Santa Monica Boulevard. acquisitions. He refused comment because he said it would be improper to comment without consent from the studio. |
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