Just over a year since Cannon TTM acquired the stumbling HHLA Entertainment Center in Westchester for a reported $80 million, the company has announced it’s now pouring $150 million into reimagining it, with hopes of it becoming an entertainment destination.

“I’ve always been inspired by destination retail,” TTM principal Tyler Mateen said. “I think it’s a difficult type of real estate to understand, but I think that if you’re able to create a destination and a draw that’s unique you have a unique business.”

Mateen purchased the 250,000-square-foot mixed-use retail center in March of last year. Its sale marked a significant discount from its previous purchase price of $111 million back in 2015.

“I have been tracking HHLA for a better part of 10 years and it has struggled with its identity within the market,” El Warner, an executive vice president of retail capital markets for Colliers, said.

The two-story outdoor shopping mall has seen a variety of tenants come in and out and has struggled to differentiate itself amid larger competitors and a wailing office market. For years, many of HHLA’s storefronts have sat empty.

“I realized it was an underutilized property,” Mateen said. “The opportunity arose. They were trying to sell the property and I thought, ‘if I could just put some entrepreneurial spirit into it, I might just be able to turn it into something unique,’ and that’s what I’m aiming to do.”

HHLA history

Formerly known as The Promenade at Howard Hughes Center, the retail complex was developed by J.H. Snyder Co. and opened in 2000, named after the late American aerospace engineer, film producer and pilot.

It originally featured The Bridge Cinema De Lux, a luxury movie theater, and several restaurants including Johnny Rockets, Islands Restaurants, On The Border Mexican Grill & Cantina, Subway and Starbucks, plus a Nordstrom Rack, and Borders Books and Music.

The Bridge was eventually purchased by Rave Cinemas and operated under the Rave banner until the theater was one of the 32 locations purchased by Cinemark in 2012 for $240 million.

The center was popular around its opening, but over the years fell in prominence due to its proximity to the Westfield Culver City shopping mall and lost some of its big tenants including Borders, which closed in 2011 due to the chain’s liquidation, and Nordstrom Rack which relocated to Westfield Culver City in 2013.

The since-shuttered Culver City-based real estate investment and development firm Laurus Corp. acquired the complex in 2015 for $111 million, along with its preferred equity partner Torchlight Investors LLC, and spent an additional $35 million on renovations.

Since then, the center has struggled to maintain its footprint, characterized by multiple vacant store fronts and overall low levels of traffic.

“The property is perfectly positioned for a rebrand,” Warner said. “The location of the asset in West Los Angeles and its visibility along the 405 freeway create a great opportunity for the new owner. The current owner purchased the property at a low basis which allows them the flexibility to reinvest capital and still make an excellent return.”

New tenant draw

The $150 million investment – funded by Mateen himself along with a close circle of family and friends – will mostly come in the form of capital improvements, according to Mateen, who owns several retail centers across California, Nevada and Texas, as well as overall tenant refreshments.

His company previously announced the signing of Meow Wolf, an immersive art experience that creates unique spaces combining narrative storytelling with multimedia art installations – its first tenant in a future line-up of many meant to redefine the landscape of HHLA.

In order to make room for the Santa Fe, New Mexico-based arts and entertainment company, HHLA is demising the existing 148,000-square-foot Cinemark into two: in which Meow Wolf and the theater will now each occupy roughly 74,000 square feet of space.

Its body will undergo extensive renovations – including upgrades to structural, electricity, HVAC, demo and framing components as well as adding some square footage.

According to Mateen, this investment alone is roughly $120 million. Mateen expects Meow Wolf to become an anchor tenant for HHLA and predicts significant returns on this investment.

“When you have an anchor tenant, like for example Bloomingdale’s or Macy’s or just any big box retailer, the average (visitation) that they draw per year is somewhere around like three to four people per square foot,” Mateen said. “So, if you have a 100,000-square-foot space, you might draw around 300,000 to 400,000 people per year.

“Meow Wolf will draw somewhere around 35 people per square foot,” he added. “We’re doing somewhere between 10 to 11 times what a traditional big box retailer would do. I think that will definitely rejuvenate the center in the way that we need, and I think businesses will be able to be built around that. It’s just a better use.”

If those numbers are accurate, Meow Wolf could see 2.6 million visitors in its first year of operation. Assuming general admission tickets start at $54 – like they do in Las Vegas – that’s upwards of $140 million each year.

This will be Meow Wolf’s sixth location and first in California. It is scheduled to open in early 2026.

Reimagining retail

While other tenants are yet to be announced, Mateen emphasized his vision of rebranding HHLA to become a hub for entertainment, hoping to expand on the creative concept of immersive experiences.

“I think the best retail projects are the ones you can get lost in,” Jack Nathan, an assistant vice president and retail broker at Kennedy Wilson Brokerage, said. “You don’t necessarily want anything monotonous. You don’t need straight line retail. You don’t need all the storefronts to look the same. You want a sense of discovery, and design and architecture can help create that sense of discovery.”

In addition to signing on new tenants, Mateen is also keen on upgrading common areas, including adding art, electronic upgrades like speakers, improving parking facilities, upgrading onsite signage and building out a food court.

“My goal is to turn it into one of the top destinations in the county of Los Angeles,” Mateen said. “(I see it being) amidst Universal Studios or the Santa Monica Pier. Something like that that would just give anyone visiting, or also living, in Los Angeles something to do and be like a primary draw. I think that’s the final goal is to be something like that that becomes a staple and becomes part of the history of Los Angeles.”

Evolving landscape

And even though HHLA has surely had its fair share of hardships, experts believe that the landscape of the retail market is changing and, that if an owner wishes for their development to flourish, it’s important to stay on top of evolving trends.

“What I’ve seen is a lot of times these projects struggle to get off the ground quickly, or they have a perception of faltering, which I don’t think always meets the reality because they want to get to their end goal day one,” Nathan said. “And whether it’s a project like HHLA, or really any large-scale retail shopping mall, it’s an evolution and retailers change. Consumer demands change, neighborhoods change and, as long as you continue to play to your strengths but understand what your core values are for the center and your merchandising vision, you should be able to be successful.”

Capitalizing on the modern-day consumer, Mateen is hoping to create an interesting place worthy of interesting people.

“The more interesting compelling places we have for people in Los Angeles, the better the city is,” Nathan said. “That’s what the city needs. It needs ambitious people taking large swings and delivering something deserving of the city we get to live in. I’m really excited. I’m glad it’s going through this new chapter.”