Wanda Group, the Chinese conglomerate also known as Dalian Wanda Group, has successfully outbid several other parties interested in a prime site in Beverly Hills. The company plans to build a mixed-use $1.2 billion project on the site, according to published media reports.
The site, which is located at 9900 Wilshire Blvd., is situated adjacent to private Los Angeles Country Club and is close to Rodeo Drive, Hollywood, and UCLA. The project will include office space which will target “the entertainment industry,” as well as luxury apartments.
A press release from the company stated that this will be Wanda Group’s “first important step into Hollywood.” Wanda will be setting up a new Los Angeles office to deal with entertainment sector investments and “will be able to leverage on Hollywood’s solid film industry resources to support the group’s Qingdao Oriental Movie Metropolis and Qingdao International Film Festival projects in China. The office will also be the base for investment in local film production companies or global theatrical releases.”
This is not Wanda’s first attempt to buy properties related to the entertainment industry. Two years ago,, the company bought AMC, the largest chain of movie theatres in America, for $2.6 billion.
Last year, Wanda Group bought the site for a major portion of the One Nine Elms redevelopment project in London. Green Property, the original developer, was the seller.
At that time, Wanda Group announced that it planned to invest about $1.1 billion into the project, which will include two residential towers measuring 43 and 58 stories, respectively. The smaller tower will feature a 160-key, five-star hotel and 108,000 square feet of office space will be opened in a podium.
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