HOLLYWOOD, CA (CelebrityAccess MediaWire) — The deal to sell the Hollywood Palladium to a Beverly Hills developer has fallen apart, property owner Palladium Investors Ltd. said yesterday.
The buyer, Combined Properties Inc., had planned to retain the 66-year-old Sunset Boulevard concert hall and develop the adjoining parking lot, possibly with homes, stores and a hotel.
“We were in negotiations to sell the venue, but that deal was not viable and it is over,” Larry Worchell, chairman of Palladium Investors Ltd., told the Los Angeles Times.
The 3,500-capacity Palladium has been a major part of Hollywood history. It was built by former film producer Maurice M. Cohen on the site of the original Paramount Studio, where he planned to create a music mecca. The venue went on to host major acts ranging from Glenn Miller to the Grateful Dead.
Preservationists have been worried that the recent Hollywood real estate renovation boom might lead to razing the venue to make way for more commercially viable properties, as tenants are rapidly moving into the area, attracted by the district’s surging nightlife and urban vibe. –by CelebrityAccess Staff Writers