PANORAMA CITY : 4 Developers Lead Derby to Build on Old GM Site

The derby of developers hoping to build on the abandoned General Motors site in Panorama City has been narrowed to four major Southland companies, including a Woodland Hills firm that lists actor Tom Selleck as a partner and a Brentwood corporation headed by a close ally of Mayor Richard Riordan, according to sources familiar with the negotiations.

Also on the short list is an Orange County company whose president once owned the Seattle Mariners baseball team, sources said. A fourth candidate from Santa Monica, who is proposing a mammoth Wal-Mart store for the site, apparently has fallen behind in the running but remains an outside contender.

The four developers regarded as serious players have proposed a mix of industrial and retail businesses for the property, which would generate at least 1,000 jobs.

The list of potential buyers includes Selleck Properties of Woodland Hills, Lowe Enterprises of Brentwood, Arnel Development of Costa Mesa and Rothbart Development of Santa Monica.

A GM executive met with each of the company’s suitors in Los Angeles last week to discuss their proposals, sources said.