Tribune Considers Selling Chicago, L.A. Buildings
Ailing Company Also Plans to Cut 100 Jobs at Baltimore Sun
The Tribune Tower, headquarters of the Chicago Tribune and its parent company, is "underutilized," chief executive Samuel Zell says.
(By M. Spencer Green -- Associated Press)
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Thursday, June 26, 2008; Page D02
CHICAGO, June 25 -- Tribune Co. is considering selling its iconic headquarters on Chicago's Magnificent Mile and buildings in Los Angeles.
The media conglomerate said Wednesday that it asked real estate firms to explore "strategic options for maximizing the value" of Tribune Tower, a Gothic landmark completed in 1925, and Times Mirror Square, the headquarters of the Los Angeles Times.
"Both Tribune Tower and Times Mirror Square are iconic structures, deeply intertwined with the history of this company," Tribune chief executive Samuel Zell told employees in an e-mail. "But they are also underutilized, and . . . it's in our best interests to maximize the value of all our assets."
Zell, a billionaire who earned a fortune as a real estate investor, said Tribune would consider various options for the buildings but expects to maintain an "ownership position" in both properties.
Tribune Tower, a 40-story gothic building near the Chicago River, is home to the company's namesake newspaper, the Chicago Tribune. Times Mirror Square is a five-building complex in downtown Los Angeles.
Tribune went private in December when a heavily leveraged $8.2 billion buyout led by Zell was completed.
The company is in the midst of sweeping changes being pushed by Zell's management team as Tribune tries to cope with a steep decline in revenue.
The Baltimore Sun, another Tribune property, said it will cut about 100 jobs through buyouts, layoffs and the closing of open positions.
Publisher Tim Ryan announced the cuts Wednesday in a memo to newspaper staff that was obtained by the Associated Press. Ryan's memo says that the Sun will offer buyouts Friday to all employees and that layoffs will be announced July 18.
It's the latest in a series of cuts at the Sun. Last year, 41 employees accepted buyouts, and the year before, the Sun closed its last two foreign bureaus.
The Hartford Courant, another Tribune paper, said separately on Wednesday that it plans to cut nearly 60 newsroom positions and 25 percent of its news pages as it struggles with an industry-wide decline in advertising.
Zell is trying to sell another iconic asset, the Chicago Cubs, and possibly the historic Wrigley Field, where the team plays. He also recently disclosed plans to cut costs by trimming pages and editorial content from the company's daily newspapers.
