The recent sale of Community Chevrolet’s industrial building in Burbank allows a group of investors to transform the site into an entertainment and media hub. The single-story, 67,000-square-foot industrial building had served as an overflow space for the adjacent dealership since 2005. The building, located at 211 S. Lake St. was sold to VAST RE/sources, an acquisition and development entity connected to Burbank-based real estate brokerage and property management firm Commercial REsource. The property was sold for $6.2 million, said Emil Akopian of Coldwell Banker Commercial in Glendale. Akopian and two other agents represented Community Chevrolet in the sale. VAST RE/sources was represented by Commercial REsource. The transaction closed April 15. Seller: Community Chevrolet Buyer: VAST RE/sources Address: 211 S. Lake Street Size: 67,000 square feet Price: $6.2 million Sale Close Date: April 15 Name of New Project: Media Town Spaces Future Use: Entertainment and media company use Approved Future Lots: 7 The new owners plan to renovate the building, splitting it into seven units for future tenants, lessees and buyers in the entertainment and media industries, said Mark Pettibone, executive vice president of Commercial REsource and partner in VAST RE/sources. The project has been dubbed Media Town Spaces. The building’s features attracted the investor group to the property. “We really liked that it was central to DreamWorks, Disney, Warner Bros. and Universal (Studios) and within minutes of all the major studios,” Pettibone said. “It also has the highest fiber-optic capacity in Burbank available in that location.” Other perks Pettibone noted included a high level of access to electricity from the city, the site’s large size and proximity to freeways and the airport. Upgrades The property’s new owners plan to spend about $3 million to renovate the building, adding walls to divide the structure into units, building infrastructure appropriate for its future tenants, creating a more modern exterior facade and shortening the structure to add more space in the back for driving and parking, Pettibone said. Demolition and construction are set to begin in the next week or so and the project is expected to be completed between September and November. The design will be further defined as the company secures its future tenants. The plans have already created a buzz. “Multiple entities have expressed an interest in acquiring more than one unit, (and) some up to the entire building,” Pettibone said. Companies that have approached the investor group include post-production companies, at least one broadcasting studio and a data center, he added. Listed in 2009 The former Community Chevrolet building had been placed on the market in 2009 by a brokerage firm with Coldwell Banker Commercial eventually taking over the listing, Akopian said. The dealership kept using the site even after the property was listed. The listing also drew bids from other entertainment-focused investment groups, but VAST RE/sources was the final choice. Pettibone said his acquisition entity has been working with the city of Burbank for about a year on its plans for the building it eventually acquired. The investor group placed its official bid on the property last May and opened escrow in June. Akopian said the new hub will likely have a positive effect on the local entertainment sector. “It’s going to bring a lot more life to that industry in Burbank, and I think it’s definitely going to bring some confidence into the market,” he said.
Investors Planning Entertainment Hub at Burbank Site
