Anaheim : Former Adult Theater Paid for Loss of Business

The owner of the former Pussycat Theater in Anaheim received a $200,000 settlement Tuesday for a loss of business from the property the city demolished.

While council members approved the claim by Amil Shab against the city Redevelopment Agency, the value of the property is still in dispute, Redevelopment Director Norm Priest said.

The city acquired the Pussycat Theater, known for its sexually explicit films, through its condemnation powers in 1983, Priest said. In its place, the city zoned the area for apartments or condominiums.

The city and Walnut Properties Inc. are scheduled for a mandatory settlement conference in Orange County Superior Court Aug. 2, said Thomas Stoever, an attorney for the city.

The $200,000 the city agreed to was for “loss of good will,” defined by state law as “the benefits that accrue to a business as a result of its location, reputation for dependability, skill or quality and any other circumstances that result in probable retention of old or acquisition of new patronage.”