A St. Louis County-based video, audio and lighting company will move to the city, thanks to support from the Kranzberg Arts Foundation and the St. Louis Development Corporation.
Logic Systems Holdings will make up Delmar Stage and Studios on Delmar Boulevard, a new facility that will bring the company’s 150 workers to the Downtown West neighborhood.
St. Louis Development Corporation's board of directors approved $5 million in federal New Markets Tax Credits to redevelop the space for the stage.
The move is aimed at bolstering the city’s film production scene. Last year, Gov. Mike Parson signed a bill that will provide tax incentives for movie and television productions that move in the state.
“Having some of those opportunities land in the middle of the city of St. Louis allows us to use our downtown and our beautiful city to be an amenity to those touring films or touring music productions,” Kranzberg Arts Foundation Executive Director Chris Hansen said.
The Kranzberg-owned facility also will include its workforce development program, which provides training for people looking for arts and entertainment jobs. Hansen said Logic Systems is a big partner in the program.
“This is all things from the technical fields all the way to facilities, operations and digital art infrastructure,” Hansen said. “It’s a very important program to help diversify and reseat the arts and entertainment ecosystem, which since COVID has been sorely understaffed and historically not been very representative of a diverse population.”
The first phase of the $6.25 million project will be completed next summer. Logic Systems Holdings has also committed to purchasing land next door to be used for soundstages that will open at a later date.
Logic Systems is the latest company to announce a move to from St. Louis County to St. Louis. In September, Stock Legal and Legal Back Office announced it would move to Delmar Boulevard. Logic Systems Holdings considered Clayton but chose the city, said Neal Richardson, St. Louis Development Corporation president and CEO.
“We know we've lost a lot of jobs to other areas within the region,” Richardson said. “To now see businesses like Logic Systems and Stock Legal say I want to be located in the city, I think we can build on that momentum to show that St Louis city has value.”
