MOORPARK : City Ready to Sell Downtown Property

With just one more loose end to tie off, the city of Moorpark is poised to sell a 15-acre piece of downtown property that will be the site of a supermarket and the city’s first movie theater.

The Moorpark City Council unanimously approved the $3.8-million sale of the property, located on Los Angeles Avenue west of K mart, Wednesday night, but the council must reconvene next week to give its final approval after minor changes are made to a sales agreement.

“This is the best deal the city has ever made,” said Councilman Scott Montgomery.

Ventura Pacific Properties wants to purchase the property and build an eight-screen theater and an Albertson’s supermarket on the lot. The city is hoping that the project will be complete by the end of the year.

The city will help finance the sale with a 3% loan to be repaid within the next two to five years, said Steven Hayes, manager of the city’s Redevelopment Agency.

Although the property’s sale price equals what the city paid for the acreage in December, 1993, the city will not be able to recoup about $500,000 in escrow costs, legal expenses, staff time and consultant fees.

But city officials said they expect to quickly offset those costs through increased sales tax revenue.

The developer estimates that the new shopping center and theater will create about 200 jobs and, in the first year after completion, net the city about $54,165 in tax revenues. Over a 20-year period, city officials expect the new development to bring in $4.5 million in sales tax revenue, Hayes said.

Next to the theater and shopping center the city also plans to build about 50 affordable condominiums and a neighborhood park.