Steiner Studios will open a second television and film hub at Bush Terminal in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, city officials announced on Thursday. The production studio has operated a 780,000-square-foot facility at the Brooklyn Navy Yard since 2004.
The development of Steiner’s $320 million 500-square-foot facility will be spearheaded by the New York State Economic Development Corporation the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment and is expected to create 1,800 construction jobs, according to Mayor Bill de Blasio.
The project comes with a goal of 25% participation rate by Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprises, and Steiner will also be required to recruit qualified candidates from the local community through NYCEDC’s HireNYC program.
Once completed maintenance of the facility will create 2,200 full-time permanent positions for set builders, electricians, prop-masters, set dressers, hair and make-up artists, and costume designers.
Apart from aiding the city’s economic recovery amid the novel coronavirus pandemic, the project aims to increase diversity and equity in the media and entertainment industry, according to NYSEDC by investing $50,000 a year to people of color and women through Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment’s Made in NY Production Assistant and Made in NY-Post Production job-training program. The funds would help add 25 to 30 more participants each year to each program.
Steiner Studios will also invest $250,000 to a non-profit organization that aims to support gender equity, diversity and inclusion in the NYC film and television production industry. The studio has yet to decide which non-profit it will commit the fund.
Once the facility is open, the studio will provide free office or classroom space for at least one non-profit that works to advance racial equity, diversity and inclusion in the production industry and will create a new, offsite local production industry job training program for high school students.
Steiner has committed to investing $50,000 towards the creation of the job training program and $25,000 a year for resources and programming and school year internship opportunities. The studio plans to also roll out a summer internship program that will include two paid 10-week positions in either stage operations, lighting, grip or production facilities management. Local community organizations in Sunset Park will help connect Steiner to eligible summer interns.
The New York City Economic Development Corporation is working towards expanding the space’s garment manufacturing capacity as well, de Blasio said.
“It’s a duel effort with the theme of made in New York,” the mayor told reporters. “It will continue to strengthen New York City’s hand not only in our historic garment industry and fashion industry but in the film and TV industry which has been extraordinary in recent years in the city and is starting to come back strong.”
Mayor de Blasio announced plans for the Made in New York Campus at Bus Terminal in 2017 to serve as a hub for the garment production as rent prices in Manhattan continue to push out manufacturers from the city’s historic Garment District. The NYCEDC has paused construction of the $136 million development since the novel coronavirus spread to New York City.
