The Quest for Brand-Name Chic : Glendale Officials Weigh Chances of Upscale Fashion Center

Look out, Rodeo Drive. Here comes Brand Boulevard.

Glendale officials are considering building in the downtown redevelopment project an upscale fashion center that could rival the luxury shops of the Westside. Beverly Hills retailers say the idea is a bit far-fetched, but Glendale leaders say they have the statistics and studies to back the idea.

Susan Shick, Glendale redevelopment director, said studies show that the number of affluent families living in Glendale and its surrounding communities is growing, and many of those families are shopping in Beverly Hills rather than Glendale.

“We need to stop that movement to the Westside and bring more high-end dollars here,” said Shick during a study session of the Glendale Redevelopment Agency last week.

Agency members for months have pondered what move to make next in the downtown redevelopment project, launched in 1972 and expected to be completed by the year 2019. The redevelopment area is along Brand Boulevard between Colorado Street and Glenoaks Boulevard, Central and Maryland avenues.

The northern end of the district has emerged as a financial and insurance industry area of high-rise office buildings, while the southern portion has focused on retail development with the Galleria I and Galleria II shopping malls.

City officials said they are now concentrating on developing the area between the retail and financial districts, an area bordered by Brand, Orange Street, Broadway and Wilson Avenue. A mixed-use district of office buildings, a downtown hotel, retail and cultural arts facilities has been proposed.

Last fall, agency members traveled to Denver, Washington and Baltimore to study retail centers and mixed-use developments in those cities.

One- and two-story retail shops on the block, including the Egyptian Village Cafe--which was considered historically significant--were leveled more than three years ago. The land has remained vacant and fenced since, an eyesore in the center of the retail district, merchants complain.

Twin Office Towers

The site is owned partly by American Trading Real Estate Co., which had planned to build twin office towers on the property. The city approved preliminary plans for the project several years ago, but later criticized the design of the proposed rectangular towers.

American Trading last year announced that it is no longer interested in building the office development and will sell its interest in the property. The redevelopment agency since has been searching for other uses for the site, such as the proposed high-end retail center.

In the study session last week, agency members indicated that stores similar to those found on Rodeo Drive could be built directly north of the present Glendale Galleria, which is itself one of the most successful regional shopping centers in Southern California.

Shick said a high-fashion center could serve as an “important linkage” between the Galleria and a proposed mixed-use downtown hotel, plaza and office center on the Brand Boulevard block between Wilson and California avenues. The hotel development could tie into a proposed cultural center development utilizing the historic Alex Theatre directly across the street in the same block, she said.

Agency members said they want the proposed high-end retail center to open outward onto the street, thus encouraging shoppers to venture in, unlike the Galleria, which from the streets that surround it has the appearance of a brick fortress.

Rodeo Drive retailers scoff at the idea that Glendale could compete with Beverly Hills.

“Glendale is too close,” said Lynne Freeman, office manager at Chanel, a chic Rodeo Drive boutique which has outlets in San Francisco and five other major cities. “Glendale? No,” she said matter-of-factly. Newport Beach might be considered by some Beverly Hills stores, but Glendale is out, she said.

“Absolutely not,” said Katy Sweet, a vice president of Giorgio’s of Beverly Hills when asked about branching out to Glendale.

Nevertheless, Glendale officials say that a high-end retail center could boost Glendale’s strength in the competitive Southern California market.

“We need to concentrate on new stores that will bring in new dollars,” said City Councilman Larry Zarian during the study session of the council, which also doubles as the redevelopment agency.

A 1986 survey by Keyser Marston Associates found that the number of families living within a 10-mile radius of the Glendale Galleria have a “substantially greater potential” to support high-end retailers than each of four other areas studied--the Pasadena Lake Street shopping area, South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa, The Promenade in Woodland Hills and Del Amo Fashion Square in Torrance.

The study found that more than 30,000 households in the Glendale area have annual incomes of more than $75,000--a 62% increase from 1980 to 1985. Many of those high-income residents are likely patrons of upscale stores, according to the report. With the proper development, the Keyser Marston report suggested, Brand Boulevard could be transformed “into one of the finest retail and office addresses in Southern California.”

City officials for years have talked about extending the Galleria shopping mall south from Broadway to Colorado Boulevard between Central Avenue and Brand Boulevard. Expansion of the Galleria could include the addition of more mid-range department stores such as Bullock’s and the May Co., Shick said.

Favor Scrapping Plans

But agency members now say they are leaning toward temporarily scrapping those plans in favor of drawing top-quality stores to the downtown.

Zarian said he is concerned that adding more mid-range stores to the Galleria could dilute the sales draw of the stores that are there now. “Can this community expand at both ends and bring in new dollars?” he asked. “I think that we cannot. We must decide which way we want to go.”

Councilman Carl Raggio said, “We need to bring in people who are not shopping here now.”

Shick said a high-fashion center could feature stores such as exclusive designer boutiques, custom jewelry shops and, possibly, an upscale department store, such as Saks Fifth Avenue or Neiman Marcus Co.

She said such stores generally will not go into a mid-range shopping mall such as the Galleria because it lacks exclusivity.

She also said that the R. H. Macy & Co. has expressed interest in building a store in Glendale, but that other major stores in the Galleria, such as the Broadway and Nordstrom’s, may object to such plans.

An official of the Macy California division, who declined to be identified, said Tuesday that company officials have announced plans to build two new stores in Marina del Rey and Irvine. The company plans to build “nine or 10 others in the next decade,” the official added. “Glendale is a possibility.”

Glendale officials are not sure that a Macy’s would fit into their idea of a high-end fashion center. “There really is a difference between a Macy’s and a Saks,” Raggio said.

‘Could Add More Stores’

“We could easily add more stores to the Galleria,” Shick said this week. “But that may not add a substantial new market share. We need to look at a concept that broadens the market.”

William R. Boyd Jr., a sales consultant with Coldwell Banker in Glendale, predicted office uses in downtown Glendale will shift within the next five years from financial and insurance company “back office” services to professional uses such as law firms and accountants.

“As office space becomes more expensive in downtown Los Angeles and Century City, we will get more migration of professional firms to Glendale,” Boyd said.

“What is apparent is that as the office market matures, so will the retail market,” Boyd added. “We’re going to get more higher-end major department stores and speciality shops. We know there is a need now because of the interest expressed by major high-end retailers. We have to find a place to put them.”

The next study session will be at 10 a.m. on March 15 at Glendale City Hall.