How Culver City's Past Is Helping Propel Its Future
Culver City has borne the moniker “The Heart of Screenland” since the city was established by real estate developer Harry Culver around 1913.
Movie studios, including Sony Pictures Entertainment, reside there, and the city is attracting even more industry with tech companies, retailers and content producers flocking there.
“We’re working in every corner of our city to continue to process successful redevelopment and programming,” Culver City Mayor Jeff Cooper said.
The Metro Expo Line is another boost for the city, according to Cooper.
Lowe Enterprises is planning a mixed-use project, Ivy Station, next to the Metro Expo Line that will have 500K SF of office, retail, apartments and a boutique hotel.
The Culver Steps by Hackman Capital Partners is another big project in the works. It will include 115K SF of creative office and retail.
A groundbreaking is expected around the next couple of weeks. The company purchased the development rights for The Culver Steps, at 9300 Culver Blvd., from Hudson Pacific Properties and Combined Properties.
Talk of the development elicited applause from the audience at this week’s Bisnow Future of Culver City event held at C3, also known as Culver City Creative, a new 280K SF creative office building designed by Gensler at 5800 Bristol Parkway.
Hackman Capital Partners Managing Director Ryan Smith said he thinks content is driving a lot of tenants to the area. The current growth in Culver City ties in with the city’s history, he said.
“They want to go places where content was made in the past,” Smith said.
Cooper said he is pleased to see how far the city has come since the recession eight years ago.
Developers say Culver City is truly becoming a destination.
Its advantages include its proximity to the Interstate 90 and 405 interchanges, according to JLL Managing Director Carl Muhlstein. He said tech companies in the Bay Area also are starting to move down to Silicon Beach.
“I think we’re prepared here to meet that opportunity,” Muhlstein said.
Culver City also is attracting people from Century City and other parts of LA, according to Muhlstein.
Hackman Capital bought The Culver Studios on Washington Boulevard three years ago.
The studios, where “Gone With the Wind,” "E.T." and other famous movies were filmed, will celebrate its 100th anniversary next year.
