A construction site off 52nd Street is set to transform Pier 94 in Hell’s Kitchen into Sunset Pier 94 Studios.

New Yorkers can expect a film studio with six stages, offices along the pier, park space and a public events space.


What You Need To Know

  • A construction site off 52nd Street is set to transform Pier 94 in Hell’s Kitchen into Sunset Pier 94 Studios

  • New Yorkers can expect a film studio with six stages, offices along the pier, park space and a public events space

  • The facility is more than 200,000 square feet and the architects behind this project say one of the main drivers in building this studio is the open space
  • The space is expected to open in a year

Architects say the studio is the first of its kind in New York because it’s built specifically for TV and film.

“It’s not an adaption of some building with some prior use. It is properly built with insulation and appropriate ceiling heights. It is all electric,” Barry Langer, executive vice president of development at Vornado Realty Trust, said.

The city Department of Economic Development partnered with Vornado Realty Trust, Hudson Pacific Properties and Blackstone on the $350 million project. Architects at Gensler are developing the project.

The city owns Pier 94 and is leasing out the waterfront asset for 95 years, investing $54 million in upfront repairs to the pier.

The facility is more than 200,000 square feet and the architects behind this project say one of the main drivers in building this studio is the open space. They hope it makes for better shoots.

“Most adaptive used spaces have a really hard time having clear column free spaces for their sound stages,” Leslie Jabs, principal at Gensler, said.

The Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment says TV and film permit numbers were down by 18% in 2024 compared to 2022 before the Writers and Actors strikes.

Officials expect the studio to generate more than 1,300 construction jobs and 400 permanent jobs.

“The average New Yorker who is working in the catering functions or working in set making the lighting and the grip and electricians that run these shows, there is big job production that comes out of TV, generally speaking,” Langer said.

Silvercup Studios in Long Island City, Queens opened in 1983 and Steiner Studios opened at the Brooklyn Navy Yard in 2004. This new facility will allow for productions to be centered in Manhattan.

“I think I can see it being a new home for a lot of creatives,” Silvana Marmolejos-Reed, founder and CEO of Living Latina Productions, said.

Marmolejos-Reed says she believes the space will provide jobs and perhaps provide another option for colleagues who were displaced by the LA wildfires.

“It has been a such a challenging and somber time. But I think a lot of them, as I talk to them, they are open and willing to go where the work is,” Marmolejos-Reed said.

Sunset Studios has 40 sound stages and offices at four Los Angeles locations, the company says they’re all unharmed by the fires. This space in Manhattan is expected to open in a year.