DMG, Hertz Group to Sell CMC

Los Angeles — DMG World Media and the Hertz Group entered an agreement to sell the California Market Center (CMC) to Jamison Properties of Los Angeles for $135 million. Closing is expected to be completed by the end of January 2005. DMG will also end its management responsibilities, which it undertook with a master lease agreement with the Hertz Group in August 2001. In January 2003, DMG purchased 20 percent of the three-building complex in downtown Los Angeles from the Hertz family. Jamison Properties, headed by Dr. David Lee, owns some 70 properties in the L.A. area, many of them in the mid-Wilshire Blvd. environs. "Real estate is not our core business," said DMG's Fred Barnes. "The opportunity to get our investment back made sense financially." Barnes also noted that the Hertz Group brought the deal to DMG, saying it made sense to Hertz as well, as it's a real estate investor, not an operator. "From a management standpoint, we're disappointed that we won't be involved," Barnes said. "Our understanding is that the new owner is going to continue the building with the same purpose it has now." He added that he hoped to continue marketing cooperation with the CMC during the California Gift Show markets. The California Gift Show is owned by DMG and managed by George Little Management.