Palmdale Targets Shopping Center and Theater in Redevelopment Plans : Housing: Officials hope to open negotiations to buy and then demolish the old Palmdale Plaza mall, which has fallen into a state of decay.
Palmdale has decided to open negotiations to buy the city’s oldest shopping center, hoping to demolish the failed and fire-gutted eyesore in the downtown area and perhaps replace it with senior citizen housing.
The City Council voted in closed session Thursday night to begin talks with Reseda businessman Melvyn Starkman, the head of a partnership that owns most of the stores at the Palmdale Plaza. Starkman approached the city asking $3.5 million, but the city wants a much lower price tag, city officials said.
Although Palmdale is strapped for cash like many local governments, officials said the city could use redevelopment money that must be spent to develop low- to moderate-income housing.
When the one-story commercial center opened on Sierra Highway north of Palmdale Boulevard in the late 1950s, Palmdale Plaza was the area’s first major shopping outlet. The center had a J. C. Penney, a Woolworth’s, a grocery store and other, smaller businesses.
But in recent years, the center grew seedy and suffered from a lack of maintenance as the surrounding downtown area deteriorated. The final blow came when the city’s new regional mall opened a few miles away in late 1990. The Penney store relocated to the mall and the Woolworth’s closed early this year, weakened by competition from the mall and the general decay of downtown.
The Palmdale Plaza has been virtually abandoned since Woolworth’s left. The last remaining business, a Security Pacific Bank branch, is due to close in early November, leaving a recently opened city recreation center as the last remaining tenant.
Also this year, two fires gutted the unoccupied middle part of the center. The damaged areas have remained fenced and little cleanup work has been done, adding to the area’s already grimy appearance.
Several issues may complicate any purchase, however. In addition to Starkman’s partnership, three other private landholders and the city itself own portions of the property. Another concern is potential contamination from asbestos in the stores or from gas left by a long-gone service station.
Starkman has a rocky history with the city. In 1990, officials wanted to buy or lease the J. C. Penney building for a temporary city library after the store relocated to the mall. But the deal foundered after Starkman refused to allow the city to inspect the site for hazards.
