"They have a lot of space that would work perfectly for our purposes," said Ivan Schwarz, executive director of the Greater Cleveland Film Commission.
View full sizeCould American Greetings' 1-million-square-foot headquarters in Brooklyn find new life as a movie studio after the company moves out? The Greater Cleveland Film Commission is exploring that very possibility.BROOKLYN, Ohio -- American Greetings Corp. hasn't moved out, but the Greater Cleveland Film Commission already wants to turn the building into a movie studio.
Ivan Schwarz, executive director of the Film Commission, said plans are still in the early stages, but he sees the potential to turn parts of the 1-million-square-foot corporate headquarters into a high-tech multimedia film production center.
He said he would love to get started before 2014, when American Greetings is scheduled to leave.
"They have a lot of space that would work perfectly for our purposes," Schwarz said.
"It's a well-kept building with the potential for many different types of production and multiple uses. We could turn the warehouse into sound stages, offices into production offices and a backlot that people that could shoot in."
Schwarz is headed to Los Angeles next week and wants to bring back an expert to help him evaluate the site's potential.
American Greetings, which has received state tax incentives worth up to $93.5 million over 15 years to stay in Ohio, said Thursday that it is willing to donate all or some of its building to the county or the state for use by nonprofit groups or other tenants so the property can keep generating economic benefits for Brooklyn.
The company also said that it is bringing an unspecified number of jobs back to Brooklyn from its operations outside Ohio.
Those jobs would be in addition to the nearly 2,000 headquarters jobs that the company is moving to the Crocker Park development in Westlake.
Cuyahoga County Executive Ed FitzGerald said the company could bring at least 100 jobs to Ohio.
However, company spokeswoman Patrice Sadd said: "It's premature to quantify the number of jobs this early in the process.
"We have had some very constructive discussions with Mr. FitzGerald and his staff, and we're jointly focused on maximizing the job potential at the Brooklyn site after American Greetings relocates," she said via email. "We're in the early stages of this partnership with the county."
Chief Executive Zev Weiss said in a statement that "with the right support from the county and the state, the facility could be a magnet for certain types of jobs, and in that context, we would be an enthusiastic partner."
FitzGerald, who had urged the company to stay in Brooklyn and rebuild its headquarters there, said that after he realized the company was probably leaving, he began urging Weiss and other executives to come up with an exit strategy that wouldn't leave Brooklyn with a vacant lot.
He has spoken to state legislators about enacting a job creation tax credit specifically for the Brooklyn property.
"We're not 100 percent there, but we're having some productive discussions," he said. "That should be of some solace to the people of Brooklyn."
The county and the company also haven't decided what to do about structural issues at the 53-year-old facility, which has had problems with leaky roofs and mold in some offices.
The company spent more than $1.5 million from 2007 to 2009 fixing the roofs and treating mold and other workplace hazards in the building, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
The company said it did evaluate the cost of updating its existing offices vs. building a new one in ultimately deciding to go to Westlake.
"There are certainly issues with the physical plant, and we've got to figure out if it makes sense to take over part of the campus," FitzGerald said.
"I appreciate American Greetings' willingness to work with us and be creative in finding new occupants for this space. By offering to contribute the building, they are going out of their way to do the right thing for the community," he said.
County and city officials said it's too early to determine what tax benefits or other advantages American Greetings might get from donating the land.
Nate Kelly, deputy chief of staff for development, said it's clear to him that the Weiss family did not want to turn its back on that property.
"They do have a generation's worth of history at that site, and they wanted to make sure that the site didn't go fallow" after they left, he said.
Brooklyn Mayor Richard Balbier said he looks forward to hearing more details about new tenants and uses for American Greetings' building.
"I'm excited that people are interested in helping us," he said.
"I'm happy that the county's involved, and hopefully, with the county, the state and American Greetings, we can work something out and have a new tenant in there before they leave."
FitzGerald said investment by groups like the Greater Cleveland Film Commission will help bring other companies to the site.
"Is it going to become the equivalent of what Brooklyn has now? No," he said.
"But it's a heck of a lot better than where this whole thing stood last week."