UCLA purchases vacant mall in West L.A. with plans to create massive research campus

by: Travis Schlepp Posted: Jan 3, 2024 / 01:47 PM PST Updated: Jan 3, 2024 / 01:51 PM PST A vacant mall in West Los Angeles will have a new life in academia after it was acquired by UCLA. The renowned university has purchased the Westside Pavilion on Pico Boulevard with plans to transform the massive property into a state-of-the-art research campus. The 700,000-square-foot property is located about two miles from the school’s Westwood campus and was purchased for $700 million , most of which was made possible through a $500 million investment from the state.

The Westside Pavilion will be reimagined into the UCLA Research Park, which will house the California Institute for Immunology and Immunotherapy at UCLA and the UCLA Center for Quantum Science and Engineering as well as “programs across the disciplines. ” UCLA Chancellor Gene Block described the acquisition as “transformative” for the university, the city and the entire world, thanking the California Legislature and Gov. Gavin Newsom for making the purchase possible.

“We will remake the empty former mall into a state-of-the-art hub of research and innovation that will bring scholars from different higher education institutions, corporate partners, government agencies and startups together to explore new areas of inquiry and achieve breakthroughs that will serve our global society,” Block said in a news release. Newsom said this is the latest instance of California being the world’s leader of technological innovation. “Leveraging the next waves of technology and science — quantum computing and the immense potential of immunology — the UCLA Research Park will cement California’s global economic, scientific and technological dominance into the 22nd century and beyond,” Newsom said.

The effort to acquire the property has been ongoing for several years, spearheaded by Dr. John Mazziotta, CEO of UCLA Health. Mazziotta said his vision for UCLA Research Park is to be the “immunology equivalent of Silicon Valley.

” Google previously leased the property, the school said, and was instrumental in helping the transfer go smoothly. In addition to being the new hub for immunology study, the UCLA Research Park will also house the UCLA Center for Quantum Science and Engineering, which conducts research in the “emerging field of quantum science,” including quantum computing and communication. The Westside Pavilion opened in 1985 and sits on the 10800 block of West Pico Boulevard.

It features an enclosed pedestrian bridge over Westwood Boulevard, “broad metal and glass façade,” 17-foot ceilings and panoramic windows. As part of the purchase, the university is also acquiring the attached multiplex theater, which may be converted into lecture halls or performance spaces. The property has seen significant redevelopment in recent years with updated infrastructure improvements, seismic retrofitting, renovated building facades and reimagined courtyards, terraces and patio spaces.

Hudson Pacific Properties and Macerich, the previous property owners, worked with Google on converting part of the property into flexible office space. UCLA has been rapidly growing its footprint throughout the city in the few years to address crowding and increase enrollment and expand its cultural reach. In September 2022, the school created the UCLA South Bay campus after it acquired the former Marymount California University campus in Rancho Palos Verdes and its residential property in San Pedro.

In June 2023, UCLA purchased the historic Trust Building in downtown Los Angeles which was branded UCLA Downtown and will host satellite classes and house administrative offices. The university also purchased the vacant Crest Theater in Westwood, which it extensively renovated and reopened last fall as the Nimoy . The expansions are also part of the University of California System’s ambitious goals to produce 200,000 more undergraduate and graduate degrees by 2030.

“We recognize the former Westside Pavilion’s place in L. A. ’s history and are grateful for the chance to turn the empty former mall into the future home of discoveries that will change the world,” Block said.

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