Century City is a 176-acre commercial and residential district in western Los Angeles, California. It is bounded by Westwood on the northwest, West Los Angeles on the southwest, Beverlywood on the southeast, and the city of Beverly Hills on the northeast. Its major thoroughfares are Santa Monica, Olympic, and Pico Boulevards (its northern boundary, central artery, and southern boundary, respectively).

Century City is an important business center, and many law firms and executives--particularly those with ties to the film, television, and music industries--have offices there. Its Westfield-owned shopping mall is one of the major retail centers in Los Angeles.

Skyscrapers

The high-rise buildings along Wilshire Boulevard in Westwood appear to blend in with those of Century City when seen at a distance, although they are separated by over three-fourths of a mile.

Its gleaming high-rises stand in stark contrast to the small apartment buildings and single-family detached homes in the lower-density neighborhoods surrounding it, and were some of the first skyscrapers built in Los Angeles after the lifting of earthquake-related height restrictions in the early 1960s.

History

Once a backlot of 20th Century Fox, which still has its headquarters in the area, the Fox studio commissioned a master-plan development from Welton Becket Associates, which was unveiled at a major press event on the 'western' backlot in 1957. In 1963 the first building, Century City Gateway West, was complete, followed the next year by Minoru Yamasaki's Century Plaza Hotel.