L.A. Politicians Want DreamWorks to Build

When it comes to DreamWorks SKG, Los Angeles city politicians won’t take no for an answer.

Despite a clear message from the entertainment company that it is not interested in constructing a new studio, Los Angeles City Council President John Ferraro and Councilman Joel Wachs said Wednesday they want to entice DreamWorks to come to North Hollywood.

Ferraro and Wachs were not discouraged by an initial chilly response to their proposal from representatives of DreamWorks, founded by entertainment giants Steven Spielberg, David Geffen and Jeffrey Katzenberg.

“We’ve got an amazing site in North Hollywood,” Wachs told reporters at City Hall. “We have a subway stop on site and it is in an area that has a concentration of other studios and entertainment businesses.”

DreamWorks, however, has said that it does not make sense financially for the company to build a studio from the ground up. DreamWorks scrapped plans for its $250-million Playa Vista project July 1 because of financial considerations and a change in corporate strategy.

The entertainment company can rent sound stage space at a lower cost than building a new production center, company executives said. The company also has shifted its focus from creating a master campus to expanding existing office space on the Universal Studios lot and at its animation studio in Glendale.

Still, executives said they were willing to hear the city out.

“We’d be happy to sit down with city officials and listen to any proposal they wish to present,” said Andy Spahn, head of DreamWorks’ corporate affairs. “But at this point we are not currently looking for additional space.”

On Wednesday, Ferraro and Wachs submitted a motion to the City Council directing top city managers to approach DreamWorks with a sweetened financial incentive package to become a partner in a proposed project called the Hollywood Studio Complex. Wachs said there is $17.3 million in federal grants and loans available for projects on the North Hollywood site, which is in a redevelopment area. The motion is scheduled to be taken up by the City Council on Tuesday.

The Community Redevelopment Agency already has begun negotiating with developer J. Allen Radford for construction of the $400-million Hollywood Studio Complex.

“North Hollywood would be an ideal site and certainly it’s worthwhile for us to try to encourage DreamWorks to give North Hollywood serious consideration,” Ferraro said.

North Hollywood has competition, though. The city managers of Burbank and Glendale have already sent proposals outlining how their city governments could help DreamWorks build a headquarters.