Universal City
Universal City is a community in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles County, California that encompasses the 415 acre (.65 sq mi) property of Universal Studios. Approximately 70 percent of the property is in an unincorporated area of the county surrounded by the City of Los Angeles, and the remaining area is inside the Los Angeles city limits [1]. Universal City is unincorporated to avoid City of Los Angeles business taxes and regulations (the community has a building permit office on site [2], simplifying the building process).
The community continues to be home to Universal Studios. Located in Universal City are 10 Universal City Plaza (a 36-floor office building for Universal and NBC), the Sheraton Universal, the Universal Hilton, Universal Studios Hollywood (the theme park), Universal CityWalk (a shopping and entertainment center), Gibson Amphitheatre (host to concerts and other events), and Universal's studios, sets, and lots. A Metro Rail Red Line station that serves Universal City is located across the street from 10 Universal Plaza. A Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department station is located at Universal CityWalk.
It is also the home to the only paid government operated fire station on private property, Los Angeles County Fire Department Station 51.
The ZIP Code is 91608 and the community is inside area code 818.
NBC Moves Operations
On September 10, 2007, NBC Universal management alerted its employees that the company planned to end its 56-year relationship with Burbank, California and sell much of the 34 acre Burbank complex. NBC Universal will relocate its vast television and cable operations to the Universal City complex. The new facilities - part of an $800 million skyline-altering development expected to be completed in 2011 - will be located adjacent to the Universal City Red Line subway station and feature an environmentally friendly West Coast news headquarters.
Thomas Properties Group is developing and will own NBC's new home. The so-called Peacock network will likely share its new space with other tenants. The first phase - the five-story, 315,000-square-foot (29,300 m²) broadcast studio with a 24-story post-production office facility and another 24-story high-rise with six stories of parking - should be finished in 2011. A 34-story office tower or condominium hotel is scheduled for completion in 2015, according to Thomas Properties. Eventually, the complex could employ about 3,200 people.
The Burbank studio was purchased in 1951. NBC plans to move The Tonight Show from Burbank to the Stage One lot at Universal Studios when Conan O'Brien takes over hosting duties upon Jay Leno's retirement in 2009. The company plans to take West Coast network and local news operations and other facilities such as the "Access Hollywood" set to a new state-of-the art broadcast facility across the street from Universal Studios in 2011. The new facilities will be in a new building adjacent to a subway line connecting Universal City to downtown Los Angeles. They will be across the street from Universal Studios, the Universal Studios Hollywood theme park and the CityWalk tourist destination.
Burbank Mayor Marsha Ramos was quoted as saying she was sad to learn "The Tonight Show" is leaving the city of 105,000. "'The Tonight Show' put us on the map," she told the Los Angeles Times. "Without that line from Johnny Carson about beautiful downtown Burbank, most people wouldn't even know that we exist."
The dated Burbank property will be replaced by a modern media center featuring virtual studios, interactive graphic capabilities, a glass-walled newsroom and other high-tech features.
NBC's relocation and building plans still need approval from the City and County of Los Angeles. Several influential politicians have already raised concerns regarding the size of the project given increased traffic and congestion in the area.
Loading...
the escalators were amazing....
garycalgary 2 years ago
okay the whole description thing was taken from wikipedia..
maxiepadxxmeow 3 years ago