City approves extended lease for movie studio

The Public Works and Utilities Committee on Tuesday voted to approve a new and extended lease between the city and Garson Studios, located on the midtown property that once housed a college campus.

Four of the committee members voted for the action, while member Signe Lindell abstained, raising concerns about a lack of clarity on whether the city will be on the hook to cover operational costs.

“We’re being asked to approve things that we don’t really know we are approving. That bothers me,” Lindell said.

Several city staffers, including Regina Wheeler, head of the Public Works Department, and Rich Brown, the city’s economic development director, said a quick decision was needed so the contract could move forward to the full City Council for a vote Wednesday.

The new lease language emphasizes a more secure deal with the movie studio will help efforts to “attract future film and media productions” which would otherwise be “under a constant cloud of uncertainty” during the development period.

Brown said a “global cable [television] company” is interested in using the studio for a major project, one that could bring up to $110 million in annual production expenses.

Despite a lack of specifics regarding Lindell’s questions — she also wanted to know which city entity would approve operational expenses — Brown and Wheeler said they’d prefer the public works committee move the contract forward because, as Brown put it, the film industry “is fickle” and might change its mind about the deal if it’s not done in a timely manner.

The action comes as city leaders begin exclusive negotiations with Dallas-based KDC Real Estate Development & Investments/Cienda

Partners to develop a master plan for the 64-acre midtown campus on St. Michael’s Drive.

The lease for the 30,000 square-foot facility, which includes 24,000 square feet of soundstages, starts in July and lasts for two years, with an option to extend the deal in six-month increments for up to an additional 36 months.

The monthly rent is more than $62,000. The studio, named after the late Academy Award-winning actress Greer Garson, who supplied some start-up money for the facility, opened in 1990. Over the past 30 years, a number of film and television series have used the studio, including Longmire and Manhattan.

Reached by phone, Claudio Ruben, who manages Garson Studio, said “we’re laying the groundwork for a new deal.”

Council members Chris Rivera, Michael Garcia, Roman “Tiger” Abeyta and Joanne Vigil Coppler voted to approve the measure.