Complex Near Arts Plaza Considered

Following years of planning and community input, the Thousand Oaks City Council will consider Tuesday whether to enter into an agreement with a private developer to build a huge entertainment, retail and office complex just east of the Civic Arts Plaza.

The proposal for the so-called private side of the Civic Arts Plaza calls for a 90,000-square-foot, two-story movie and virtual reality center, as well as restaurants, offices, specialty shops, a small park and a multilevel parking structure. The complex would be built on an 11.5-acre parcel owned by the city.

City officials hope the project would complement the Civic Arts Plaza, bring added revenues to the city and help revitalize a portion of Thousand Oaks Boulevard.

“The basic components are good,” Councilman Andy Fox said. “There has been a great deal of community involvement. I think it has the potential to really be the key central meeting area in the community for entertainment. That’s what we are looking for.”

The development agreement with Kilroy Industries of El Segundo only lays out the concept for the complex, leaving the specifics to be determined though the lengthy planning process.

“Assuming that we approve this, [Kilroy Industries] will still have to come up with a high-quality project,” Mayor Judy Lazar said.

Both Lazar and Councilman Mike Markey cited the Promenade at Westlake as the new benchmark for quality developments in the city.

But already some disagreements have surfaced on the council.

Councilwoman Linda Parks said a movie and virtual reality complex are not the type of use she would like to see on the private side of the Civic Arts Plaza.

“I see room for improvement,” Parks said, adding there are already enough movie theaters in Thousand Oaks to satisfy the needs of residents.

Parks also said the youths most likely to visit a virtual reality center are not the type of clientele that would support the adjoining upscale restaurants and shops.

Parks also said she would favor a lease, rather than sale, of the property because it would provide the city with an ongoing revenue stream.

But Lazar said the possibility of a lease was rejected by the council earlier this year during a closed session.

If the council approves the agreement, the project would go forward in two phases.

The initial phase would include the cinema complex, a 1,000-space parking structure and a number of retail, restaurants and office buildings. The second phase would include about 44,000 square feet of restaurant, retail and office space.

Overall, the city expects to receive as much as $5.7 million in revenues by the time the project is finished.

The city paid nearly $9 million for the property in the late 1980s when the real estate market was at its peak.

The parking structure, along with other improvements to the site, is scheduled to be built by Kilroy Industries, and would be shared with the proposed Ventura County Discovery Center, a children’s museum planned between the Kilroy project and the Civic Arts Plaza.

Parks, a founding member of the Discovery Center, resigned from its board of directors Tuesday after the city attorney advised her that unless she did so she would not be allowed to participate in the council’s discussions on the project.

Lazar said approval of the agreement would put the city a step closer to turning the unused property into something “that will be attractive and will be used by the community.” But Lazar said she was bracing for controversy.

“There has not been anything about the Civic Arts Plaza that has not been controversial,” she said.

City staff members have recommended approval of the agreement.