Unity Studios releases plans for Allen Park complex

metromode, 6/11/2009

A little over 100 acres of Allen Park is getting ready to be reborn as one of the centers of Michigan's emerging film industry, now that construction is nearly ready to begin on Unity Studios.

"We're hoping to start construction in the next 30-60 days," says Eric Cedo, director of marketing for Unity Studios.

The first phase calls for renovating a 600,000-square-foot building to add four feature size soundstages on 10 acres. Each of the soundstages measures out at 25,000 square feet. The building (which sits on 40 acres) will house space for the Lifton Institute of Media Schools and room for production support vendors.

"It's fairly intact," Cedo says.

Work on the first phase is expected to wrap up by this fall. The second and third phases will begin shortly after that. They will include developing the 64 acres into Unity Village, a tourist destination with housing, retail, and complimentary commercial business. The whole project is worth $146 million.

The new city of Allen Park municipal building complex will be built south of the existing city offices around the same time.

Source: Eric Cedo, director of marketing for Unity Studios
Writer: Jon Zemke

Film , Investment