Amazon boosts lease at Hackman’s Culver Studios development to estimated 500K sf

Hackman Capital Partners is having a big week. The local developer closed on its sale of the historic CBS Television Studios property in the Fairfax District and went public with some big news — it involves Amazon — at its Culver Studios expansion project.

At the groundbreaking for its Culver project, the firm announced that anchor tenant Amazon will lease more than 70 percent of the development for its Amazon Studios production wing, more than previously thought, according to Curbed.

That upsized lease comes out to around 505,000 square feet of the property, after the expansion is completed. Culver Studios in Culver City is now 358,000 square feet. But it will be twice that size — 721,000 square feet — when work is done. Hackman’s plan for Culver studio will include additional production space, offices and sound stages. Amazon will lease four of the five new office buildings under the new plan.

Hackman purchased the studio complex in 2014 for $85 million. It was built in 1918 and anchored by a “mansion” modeled after George Washington’s home at Mount Vernon in Virginia. A number of legendary films were shot at Culver Studios, including “Gone with the Wind,” “Citizen Kane” and “King Kong.”

Amazon is also leasing all 75,000 square feet of office space at its nearby Culver Steps development.

Hackman and CBS announced the close of a $750 million sale of the 25-acre Television City studio complex on Monday. The complex is somewhat protected from redevelopment because of its status as a Historic-Cultural Monument, but Hackman could still redevelop its large parking lots. [Curbed] — Dennis Lynch