BARDAS and Bain Capital Real Estate Announce Plans to Develop Echelon Television Center, $600 Million State-of-the Art Studio Campus in Hollywood

Hollywood, CA and Boston - September 29, 2022 – BARDAS Investment Group (“BARDAS”) and Bain Capital Real Estate today announced plans for the $600 million redevelopment of the former Television Center at 6311 Romaine Street in the heart of Hollywood through the firms’ joint venture. The project will create a contemporary, creative office environment and a state-of-the-art production facility that will transform the aging facility into a modern, approximately 620,000-square-foot urban studio campus, which will be rebranded as Echelon Television Center.

The 6.4-acre property, which once served as Technicolor’s headquarters as well as the studio lot for Metro Pictures Corp., is one of the largest development sites in Hollywood. Spanning two city blocks, it is bordered by Santa Monica Boulevard to the north, Cahuenga Boulevard to the East, Willoughby Avenue to the South and Cole Avenue to the West. The existing facility, developed between 1930 and 1966, currently offers approximately 183,000 square feet of office and studio space. The new master plan will reimagine many of the property’s distinctive buildings that were constructed during Technicolor’s golden age.

On the northern block of the property, the original art-deco facade will enclose an active studio lot, bookended by a new mid-rise creative office building with ample private outdoor terraces, framing views of the Hollywood Hills. The new construction will replace a parking lot and two dilapidated buildings on Santa Monica Boulevard. On the southern block of the campus, a parking lot will be given new life with four large soundstages flanking an expansive basecamp, capped by a six-story office building offering tailored creative office space, production support space, as well as private rooftop office bungalows and decks on its top floor.

“This project represents our company’s continued focus on redeveloping infill product for the entertainment and media industries in the content capital of the world,” said David Simon, founder and Managing Principal of BARDAS. “The old home to Technicolor and Metro Pictures represents another great opportunity to keep ‘Hollywood in Hollywood’.”

The project is the latest in a series of creative office, production and studio space being developed by the BARDAS and Bain Capital joint venture that utilizes innovative design to better serve Los Angeles’s hallmark industry. The property will be managed under the joint venture’s Echelon brand, which provides a unique amenity core of hospitality programing and services including on-site experiences, wellness platforms, food and beverage branded operators and on-site management catering to the needs of the media and entertainment community.

“We have strong conviction in the secular demand drivers underpinning the continued growth of the media and entertainment industry, and we are excited to expand our portfolio with BARDAS,” added, Joe Marconi, a Managing Director at Bain Capital Real Estate. “We look forward to working together to reimagine the site and honor its past while at the same time delivering an unmatched curated experience that meets the evolving needs of today’s entertainment and media content creators.”  

Bain Capital Real Estate and BARDAS formed a joint venture in 2019 to pursue opportunities to acquire, renovate, develop, and operate creative office and other production space targeted at users in the content and media industry, with a focus on the key content sub-markets in Los Angeles. To date, the joint venture has invested in and has a pipeline of existing and new development projects encompassing more than 1.5 million square feet.

The property was acquired by the joint venture in March 2022.   

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About BARDAS Investment Group

BARDAS Investment Group, (“BARDAS IG”) formed in 2018 with offices in West Hollywood, California is a boutique real estate development and investment firm that focuses on creating value by developing unique and inspirational workplace environments. The company produces world-class projects that anticipate and exceed the needs of today’s creative users. Utilizing thoughtful and innovative redevelopment strategies, BARDAS IG consistently creates value in the commercial real estate space, focusing on top tier markets ripe for growth in gateway west coast cities. With 30 years of commercial real estate experience and over $10 billion in transactions, BIG is positioned to take advantage of the highly specialized needs of the content producers and the creative community.

About Bain Capital Real Estate

Bain Capital Real Estate was formed in 2018 and pursues investments in often hard-to-access sectors underpinned by enduring secular trends that drive long-term demand growth for real estate assets and services. The Bain Capital Real Estate team has been executing its strategy since 2010 (formerly as a part of Harvard Management Company), having invested over $6.5 billion of equity in over 550 assets across multiple sectors. Bain Capital Real Estate focuses on opportunities where the team can apply its deep industry expertise to accelerate impact and drive operational improvements. Bain Capital Real Estate’s strategy aligns with the value-added investment approach that Bain Capital pioneered beginning in 1984 and leverages the firm’s deep expertise in the media industry across numerous subsectors.

About Echelon

Echelon is a dedicated content and media real estate brand that leverages the deep experience and global breadth of its owners’ partnership to create an environment focused on meeting the needs of the industry’s most distinguished and creative users. Echelon’ owners unique integrated venture combines BARDAS Investment Group’s decades of development and content industry tenant experience with Bain Capital’s disciplined value-added investment approach and deep experience in the media sector. Essential to Echelon, is its hospitality core that provides an elevated environment in partnership with its tenants to cultivate the highest level of creativity.