Toy Manufacturer Planning Mixed-Use Campus in the West Valley

MGA Entertainment, the Los Angeles-based manufacturer of the popular Bratz doll line, is planning a 1.2-million square-foot mixed-use complex in the San Fernando Valley

The proposed development, located at 20000 West Prairie Street in Chatsworth, would rise upon a nearly 24-acre site which once served as a printing plant for the Los Angeles Times.  The project, which is being designed by Killefer Flammang Architects, calls for a campus-style setting that would include office space, rental apartments, and community-serving retail.

MGA Entertainment's new corporate headquarters would serve as the development's focal point.  The toy maker would relocate approximately 250 employees into an existing 250,000-square-foot facility.  The nondescript two-story structure would be substantially remodeled "with a theme reflective of MGA's products."  Proposed additions include a 7,500-square-foot employee cafeteria, a daycare center, outdoor patio space and significant water features and landscaping.  The building would also contain 43,000 square feet of leasable creative office space and limited assembly, production and showroom space.

Mixed-Use Campus Planned at Former LA Times Printing Plant

Just 22 years after it opened, the Los Angeles Times shuttered its San Fernando Valley printing plant due to declining circulation.  The property has lain dormant since 2006, but may soon see new life as a mixed-use development anchored by a toy manufacturer.  MGA Entertainment, maker of the popular Bratz dolls, will relocate its corporate headquarters to the 214,000 square foot building at 20000 Prairie Street.  The adaptive re-use project, designed by Brooks + Scarpa Architects, converts the stuffy printing plant into trendy creative office space.  However, MGA also has ambitious plans for the large surface parking lots surrounding the building.  Envisioning a similar environment to Google's Mountain View campus, MGA intends to sell the majority of the 23.6 acre property to developer(s) who would build mixed-use apartment complexes.  A site plan drawn up by Nadel Architects calls for a trio of four-story residential buildings, combining to create approximately 700 apartment units.  The office and apartment structures would feature 14,000 square feet of ground floor commercial space, with parking mostly located in above-grade garages hidden from street view.  As a nice nod to the neighborhood, the land along the southern perimeter of the property would be transformed into approximately 1.5 acres of park space.  Of course, it's hard to say if this vision can translate into reality (in Chatsworth, of all places).  Still, an internally focused campus still beats the office parks and porn sets warehouses that currently surround the project site.