Roberts Projects is leaving Culver City, as gallery scene shifts to Central L.A.
The developer is moving to Hollywood at the end of next month, after a five-year run there that included opening the first new galleries in the last 20 years.
Culver City’s reputation as “the second Hollywood” has endured for decades, but as the city became an increasingly desirable place to go to retire, it became increasingly difficult to find an address that wasn’t in the Hollywood Hills.
Culver City Mayor Pro Tem Susan Babb, one of the first to recognize that the city had become that kind of address, has been a vocal defender of the city’s unique position as a second Hollywood.
“Culver City has always been a place where artists could live with the freedom to do exactly what they want,” she said. “It’s a great place to live and work.”
That was before artist-driven buildings, including the Arts at Heart, the Arts at Culver City, the Art Institute of Los Angeles and the Contemporary Arts Center.
Nowadays, those are long gone, and Culver City’s status as a second Hollywood has reached a tipping point, as developers look to build out as much potential space as possible while they wait until they can make the city truly appealing.
Culver City’s transformation from a city of artists, with its unique gallery scene, into a place with hundreds of galleries and dozens of apartment buildings, is a long-term trend within Los Angeles, one that is set to continue in the arts in general.
Culver City was a leading candidate to be the first new art gallery in the city in more than a decade when it was announced in early June that developer J.F. Shea, whose family has operated the land since the 1930s, was moving out.
“We’re delighted to be continuing the Culver City Art Center and the Culver City Arts Council,” Shea said in an email. “I’ve been a fan of CalArts since I moved to Los Angeles. It’s been an incredible experience.
“I would like to thank everyone who has supported the Culver City Art Center, the Culver City Arts Council,