Workers dismantled the iconic KTLA radio tower at the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Van Ness Avenue on Monday and Tuesday in preparation for its move to a site fronting Sunset Boulevard, where the tower was originally located from 1925 to 1950.

The KTLA radio tower on Sunset Boulevard was dismantled on Monday as part of its relocation on the property. (photo courtesy of Karen Diehl)

The radio tower, one of two towers that were originally on the property, is being moved to make way for a 14-story office building to be called the Icon at Sunset Bronson Studios. Hudson Pacific Properties, the developer that is building the project, said the idea all along was to preserve the radio tower, while bringing new office space to the Sunset Boulevard corridor in Hollywood.

The 160-foot tower was erected in 1925 and was formerly used by the Warner Bros. radio affiliate, KFWB. The station moved to a different site in Hollywood when the radio operations began to interfere with technology used for sound in motion pictures. The tower has been adorned with KTLA’s signage for more than 60 years, and the television station’s name and call letters will be incorporated on the tower when it is reassembled at its new site.

“The restoration and relocation of the former KFWB radio tower at Sunset Bronson Studios exemplify Hudson’s respect for the lot’s rich history and our commitment to its bright future,” Hudson Pacific Properties chairman and CEO Victor J. Coleman said. “We intend to offer technology, media and entertainment companies the best of old and new Hollywood via state-of-the-art creative office and production facilities.”

The radio tower was moved to its location at Sunset Boulevard and Van Ness Avenue in 1950, and KTLA later placed its signage on the tower after moving to the property in 1955. The radio tower has not been functional for decades, but is a visual icon in the area.

“It was a beacon right there on the corner,” said Los Angeles City Councilman Tom LaBonge, 4th District. “[It is] a very special lot.”

Councilman Mitch O’Farrell, 13th District, also said he is pleased the tower will be preserved.

“I think it’s great,” O’Farrell added. “There is quite an awareness now in historic preservation in the community. Even objects that might not seem of substantial importance. I am delighted they are preserving it.”

Karen Diehl, a consultant representing the developer, said the tower will likely be re-installed in 2015 after it is retrofitted. It will be located near the historic 30,000-square-foot colonial-style office building fronting Sunset Boulevard — once home to Warner Bros.’ West Coast operations — which will also remain at the site, Diehl said.

KTLA will remain at its current location on the Sunset Bronson Studios property. The new Icon building will provide approximately 323,000 square feet of office space designated for high-tech companies. The developer expects to break ground on the project early next year.

“Icon evokes the spirit of the new Hollywood, an innovative environment that functions as a vertical campus built to the highest standards of quality in architectural design, technology and infrastructure,” Coleman added. “This project will be an encore to our prior Technicolor studio development, the first new office building developed in Hollywood for decades. There is an inherent creative energy on a studio lot that cannot to be replicated. The expanded Sunset Bronson Studio campus will allow all types of media and technology businesses to interact, share ideas and potentially form new connections.”

O’Farrell said the new building on Sunset Boulevard also fits with his vision for the future of the area.

“It’s another sign that exciting companies are continuing to invest and re-invest in Hollywood and Los Angeles,” O’Farrell added. “They are really going to do a great project on Sunset Boulevard, and it’s shaping up to be a world-class business corridor.”