Skydance-Paramount merger values CBS Broadcast Center in Hell’s Kitchen, Midtown West theater, at $173.7M

Skydance Media through the entity Paramount Skydance Corporation acquired from Paramount Global through the entity CBS Broadcasting Inc., a full block of commercial buildings in Hell’s Kitchen known as the CBS Broadcast Center as well as the theater and office building 1697 Broadway a few blocks east and south in Midtown West, in a transaction valued at $173.7 million.
The CBS Broadcast Center is the entire city block bounded by 10th and 11th avenues, and 56th and 57th streets, including the office building 530 West 57th Street, and the office building (O6) 513 West 56th Street. 1697 Broadway includes the interior landmark, the Ed Sullivan Theater. The expected use is owner-occupied.

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert occupies the theater. Paramount’s subsidiary CBS announced in mid-July that the shows would end in May 2026. The Trump Administration approved the $8 billion Skydance-Paramount merger a few weeks later and it closed on August 7.

The deal closed on August 7, 2025 and was recorded on September 18, 2025. The 10 properties have 919,431 square feet of built space and 207,798 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 1,013,608 square feet according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The sale price per built square foot is $188 and the price per buildable square foot is $171 per the PincusCo analysis. (The price per square foot analysis is the transaction price divided by square feet as reported in public records and assumes no air rights have been sold.)

Prior sales and revenue

Prior to this transaction, PincusCo has no record that the buyer Skydance Media had purchased any other properties and has no record it sold any properties over the past 24 months.
The seller CBS Broadcasting had not purchased any other properties and had not sold any properties over the same time period. Out of the 10 properties, seven with a total of 919,431 square feet of built space generated revenue of $20.4 million per year.

Violations and lawsuits

There were no lawsuits or bankruptcies filed against the properties for the past 24 months. In addition, according to city public data, the properties have received three DOB violations and $15,770 in OATH penalties in the last year.

Development

For the tax lot buildings, two out of the 10 buildings received a initial certificate of occupancy in the last ten years. There are no active new building construction projects or major alteration projects with initial costs more than $1 million on this tax lot.

The neighborhood

In Hell’s Kitchen, The bulk, or 39 percent of the 40.8 million square feet of commercial built space are elevator buildings, with specialty buildings next occupying 18 percent of the space. In sales, Hell’s Kitchen has 2.5 times the average sales volume among other neighborhoods with $710.2 million in sales volume in the last two years and is the 15th highest in Manhattan. For development, Hell’s Kitchen has 1.6 times the average amount of major developments relative to other neighborhoods and is the 16th highest in Manhattan. It had 2.3 million square feet of commercial and multi-family construction under development in the last two years, which represents 6 percent of the neighborhood’s built space. There was one pre-foreclosure suit filed among other specialty buildings in the past 12 months.

The block

On the tax block of 530 West 57th Street, PincusCo has identified the owners of one of the nine commercial properties representing 23,923 square feet of the 823,364 square feet. The identified owner is Cbs Broadcasting.
There are no active new building construction projects on this tax block.

The majority, or 61 percent of the 823,364 square feet of built space are specialty buildings, with office buildings next occupying 39 percent of the space.

The seller

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Cbs Broadcasting owned at least one commercial property in New York City with 23,923 square feet and a city-determined market value of $5.1 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio consists of at least a single office property. It is located in Manhattan.

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