Sunset Boulevard may be getting its own sphere, but don’t call it that
Sunset Boulevard might be getting its own orb-like structure that doubles as a billboard and broadcasting space, but the project is not trying to be the next Sphere. The Las Vegas venue has its ginormous globular eye on it.
The proposed project was previously named “The Sphere,” but its legal spokesperson, Wayne Avrashow, told The Times his clients were contacted by representatives of Sphere in Las Vegas, “who informed us that there was the potential of conflict and confusion.”
Avrashow said his clients would, as a result, change the name of the project, though they haven’t yet landed on a new moniker.
“We will do that internally and in consultation with the city,” Avrashow said.
In a statement to The Times, Sphere Entertainment said, “We will defend our products against any entity that purposefully tries to steal our IP and trade off of Sphere’s worldwide recognition.”
Similar names aside, Sphere is a dome-shaped structure and Vegas’ newest performance venue, and the West Hollywood project is spherical in shape. Sphere’s outer shell is an LED screen that displays images of a blinking eyeball, the Earth and artificial-intelligence-generated art by Refik Anadol.
Vegas is known for its Egyptian pyramids, dancing fountains, fake Rome. A spherical building broadcasting eyeballs takes the surreal up a notch.
The Las Vegas building reaches 366 feet high and 516 feet wide. The West Hollywood structure would be a great deal smaller, at 49 feet in diameter.
If approved, the new structure would sit between the Pendry West Hollywood and Best Western hotels on 8410 Sunset Blvd.
The project is still in its early stages. It’s undergoing review by the city of West Hollywood’s Sunset Boulevard Arts & Advertising subcommittee.
Included in the proposed development are three billboards. Two would be placed on the surface of the circular structure, replacing two digital billboards currently at the site; the third is described as a “discreet vertical billboard.”
According to the project documents, the orb would be built onto an existing apartment building whose entrance is on De Longpre Avenue, which runs parallel to Sunset Boulevard.
The proposed glass sphere would have “exterior pedestrian-oriented amenities and interior spaces built around broadcasting in real time.”
The structure itself would have three levels and hover eight feet above a privately owned public-oriented plaza at the ground level, with an existing basement level below.
It’s proposed that two of the three levels house a green room and rooms for broadcasting and podcasting.
The next steps for the project are further review by the Arts & Advertising subcommittee in January, where applicants are expected to provide information on topics including potential light pollution from the project and how the building would be maintained.
Then the project eventually would go before the city planning commission and City Council.
Sign up for Essential California
The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
