King County is looking for new ways to pay for its film studio in Seattle, just two years after it officially opened for production.
Located between SODO and West Seattle, Harbor Island Studios is used to produce commercials, TV and films, according to SAG-AFTRA, the union that represents actors, broadcasters and other performers. It includes offices, meeting spaces and two soundstages. The county opened the studios in 2023 to attract film production and jobs to the region.
Faced with a $150 million deficit, the county initially cut the 117,000-square-foot studios out of its budget for 2026 to 2027. But unexpected state revenue allowed councilmembers to waive rent for the space and keep it open until June 2026. Now, the county is looking for ways to pay for the studios that don’t involve the general fund.
At a recent budget meeting, King County Councilmember Claudia Balducci proposed an amendment to keep the facilities open in the short term. She called the effort “a reprieve” for the space.
"Basically we bought some time — six months of next year, through about June of 2026 — to figure out: A, what it really cost to stay there, and B, how to pay for it," Balducci said.
The conversation over whether to fund the studios drew a packed house to that council meeting. Dozens of people from the film industry spoke in favor of continuing to fund the studio.
Balducci said it’s the county’s only affordable place for film production.
“But it’s just kind of getting its feet under it,” she said. “People are just starting to rely on it, and it just seemed like a shame to lose the capacity, just as it’s starting to really show some benefit.”
The building sits on land owned by the county’s Solid Waste Division. The county is required by law to rent the building from the division at fair market value — in this case, $1.5 million annually. Balducci’s budget amendment calls for a rent assessment and a study to determine what benefits the county receives from the studios.
Girmay Zahilay, the incoming county executive and a current councilmember, supported Balducci’s amendment. He said that this is not the first time funding for Harbor Island Studios has come into question. Zahilay added that the county needs to find an alternative way to pay for the space and that the general fund is not a “sustainable or appropriate option.”
“Whatever it is, we actually have to do it in the next six months,” Zahilay said. “Because unless something unexpectedly positive happens in our financial situation, I personally will not be proposing using general fund dollars for the studio again.”
Zahilay put forward several ideas for the space, including selling it, transferring ownership or having a nonprofit operate it.
The building was previously a flour mill. King County began rewiring it and making studio spaces soundproof in 2021. A few years later, the county officially opened the space for production in hopes that it would grow the local film industry and bring jobs with it.
