"The sale of the studios and other assets enables us to execute a tax-efficient, like-kind exchange to acquire a very strategic, long-term real estate position in Downtown Los Angeles at an attractive price," Zell says in a statement. "Further, the TMCT option will help us eliminate rent payments in several key markets."
The purchase of the eight TMCT properties is expected to occur in April, though the exact location of the assets was not revealed in the statement. The company gained the right to purchase the assets in September 2006 in a restructuring of its partnerships TMCT and TMCT II, which it had inherited in its acquisition of the Times Mirror in 2000. The Tribune Co. retains a 5% interest in the partnerships.
Tribune executives have also reportedly indicated that other real estate assets, valued at about $2 billion, are being considered for sale, including the company's headquarters on Michigan Avenue here and a facility in Baltimore. Tribune and Hudson officials did not return calls for comment.
At Tribune Studios, the Tribune-owned KTLA-TV will continue to operate under a five-year lease. The studio, built by Warner Brothers in 1919, produces syndicated TV shows, such as "Judge Judy" and "Hannah Montana" for the Tribune Co. The sale also reportedly includes three other structures on the block-sized lot.
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