The Culver Studios Innovation Plan

The Culver Studios is continuing its role as a leader in the entertainment industry by spurring economic opportunity and growth in Culver City while preserving the iconic Mansion, DeMille Theatre Mansion, the studio lot’s historic core and early sound stages. Now more than double in size, the Innovation Plan has completely transformed the industry-treasured film and television studio into a world-class campus anchored by Amazon Studios as a hub for creating and producing award-winning movies and shows.

ESA provided a full set of services to support preparation of a comprehensive Environmental Impact Report to support redevelopment on the approximately 14-acre downtown Culver Studios campus.

ESA’s historic resources team played a critical role in formulating approaches to historic preservation, including preparation and oversight of a bungalow relocation and rehabilitation plan, upgrades to the Mansion Building and landscape, and coordination with architects to ensure compatibility of new construction with historical resources on the campus. Historic Preservation experts worked with City staff and the Project design team during the EIR process to inform the project approach and protect the integrity of the historic buildings to reflect the period of historic significance from the early years of the Studio in compliance with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards.

Because Culver Studios has significant associations with historic events like the transition from silent film productions into the era of the “Talkie,” and historical figures, such as Cecil B. DeMille, David O. Selznik, and Thomas Ince, several structures were eligible for national, state, and local historic designations.

The historic core of the Studio is preserved for the public’s benefit for current and future generations.  The existing historic buildings were rehabilitated including the Mansion, Building D, DeMille Theatre, and several bungalows were restored while others were relocated on-site. The Mansion’s historic front lawn landscape was also restored based upon our meticulous research and landscape preservation consultation.

ESA also provided historic preservation design and treatment consultation to ensure that seismic, ADA, and security upgrades to all the historic buildings were undertaken in conformance with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards. Necessary changes were limited in nature to support continued use as office space and protect the historic integrity of the resources to retain and preserve all character-defining features.

Working under an aggressive schedule, ESA, in collaboration with restoration contractor Spectra Company, completed the preservation work in less than a year, concluding in March 2018. The extensive rehabilitation project was one of the largest preservation projects completed in California at the time.