After placing its current headquarters under contract for sale, Warner Bros. Discovery is set to relocate its Knoxville, Tennessee, headquarters of Scripps Networks to Brookview Promenade at 265 Brookview Centre Way. The lease for 50,085 square feet was signed in December and the move is expected to be completed by June.
The relocation helped earn the deal a 2023 CoStar Impact Award, as judged by real estate professionals familiar with the market.
Many factors went into the decision to sell the campus it is leaving, which is home to lifestyle television channels such as HGTV, Food Network, DIY Network, Travel Channel, Cooking Channel and country music network Great American Country. Cost-cutting and efficiency were the driving forces, as the company is transitioning to a hybrid work environment.
Brookview Promenade had the right space at the right time to accommodate Scripps Networks. WB Discovery needed a large block of space in a small market on a very quick timeframe. The challenge was overcome by cobbling together sublease space as well as vacant space. The lease transaction included the negotiation and execution of two termination agreements on suites that had been offered for sublease.
The new headquarters space will accommodate approximately 300 employees.
About the project: Brookview Promenade is a six-story, 194,000-square-foot, multitenant office building in Brookview Town Centre in the heart of the Bearden neighborhood. It opened in 2009 and is home to Team Health's headquarters, New York Life, Willis Towers Watson, Wells Fargo Securities, Dish Wireless, and the law firms of Baker Donelson and Brock Shipe Klenk.
What the judges said: “Keeping WB Discovery in Knoxville will have a significant impact on the local economy,” said Tom Mann, senior vice president of industrial real estate for The Hollingsworth Cos.
They made it happen: Jay Cobble, Providence Commercial Real Estate, and Joe Judge, JLL, represented the tenant. Louise Frazier, president of Blue Ridge Realty, represented the landlord.
