Sherman Oaks : Rebuilding Work Starts on Sav-On Store

On the same day Sherman Oaks residents got a sharp reminder of an earthquake’s destructive force, they also saw a welcome sign that their community is rebounding from last year’s temblor.

The Sav-on Drugs store on Ventura Boulevard, which had been boarded up since the quake, is being completely rebuilt, according to building co-owner Frank Ponder.

Along with the Radisson Valley Center Hotel, which has reopened, the store had been one of the two most visible symbols of quake damage in Sherman Oaks.

“Sav-on is one of the integral stores in the community, and one of the most visible,” said Richard Close, president of the Sherman Oaks Homeowners Assn. “I think that the fact that there’s going to be a brand new center confirms our philosophy that Sherman Oaks is going to be bigger and better than before the earthquake.”

The building is being torn down and will be replaced with two new stores.

Sav-on will rent the larger of the two, and a new tenant--who has not yet been selected--will inhabit the other space.

Ponder said he expects the store to reopen by early November.

Asked why it had taken more than a year to fix up the store, the owner said the long permit approvals process, asbestos removal and soil problems caused delays.

Loose soil will be tightly packed to provide a firmer building foundation.

Landlords spent several months negotiating with the drugstore chain in efforts to raise the rent and get Sav-on to help defray the cost of the renovations.

Ponder said he felt “wonderful” that the renovations are finally under way. “I’ll feel even better when we open the doors,” he said.

He declined to disclose the cost of the repairs.