Hollywood on the Hudson River.
A group of big New York City investors have joined forces to build Manhattan’s first $350 million production studio complex on a dilapidated pier jutting into the Hudson River, according to reports.
Investment giants Blackstone, Hudson Pacific Properties and Bornado Realty Trust will build a 266,000-square-foot campus at Pier 94 in Hell’s Kitchen near the cruise terminal. The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.
Dubbed “Sunset Pier 94 Studios,” the new project will include Greenway Bikes along the Hudson River and other public facilities integrated into the Park Trail. Groundbreaking ceremonies are expected to begin later this year.
“We’re raising the bar for New York City’s iconic industries and breathing new life into key locations on the waterfront,” Volnado president Michael Franco told Newsweek.
New York City is now the second largest studio location in the United States after Los Angeles.
Here you’ll find Queens-based productions such as Kauffman Astoria Studios, where ‘Goodfellas’ and ‘Sesame Street’ were filmed, and Silvercup Studios, where episodes of ‘Sex and the City’ and ‘The Sopranos’ were filmed. I have a studio.
The development of separate production studios not affiliated with entertainment giants suggests the consortium’s bet that the expanding field of streaming services needs more space to create new content.
Victor Coleman, CEO of Los Angeles studio owner and operator Hudson Pacific, said New York is “very supply constrained when it comes to stages.”
Under the agreement, Vornado will contribute the long-term rental of Pier 94 and own a 49.9% equity interest in the business.
Blackstone will own a 24.5% stake in Sunset Pier 94 and Hudson Pacific will own a 25.6% stake in the project.
The venture has been planning the project with city officials for more than two years, according to the Journal.
New York City and New York State have various programs and tax incentives aimed at growing New York’s film and television production business.
The investment in the new studio comes amid an ongoing workers’ strike that is shutting down Hollywood.
Hudson Pacific reports that production in LA slowed sharply in the second quarter, with filming days 60% to 70% higher for comedies and dramas than in the second quarter, and less for movies, unscripted TV and commercials. , and photography decreased by 20-25%. Last year, the Journal reported:
Streaming consumption has also retreated from the height of the pandemic, when consumers were confined to their homes due to COVID-19.
Another hurdle is the potential consolidation of the streaming market, but studio operators seem unfazed.
“Even if consolidation occurs, [streaming services] We all know we have to invest in creating original content,” Hudson Pacific executive vice president Jeff Stotland said during an earnings call earlier this month. “And obviously we hope to benefit as well.”
