City OKs Funding for Theater Study

The Oxnard City Council has voted unanimously to spend $265,000 in housing fund money on environmental, traffic, parking and soil studies for a downtown theater.

“It’s a necessary preparatory step,” said Dick Maggio, community development director.

The studies are required before the city can apply for a $10-million federal loan to finance the theater. The loan would be used to repay the housing fund.

A lease document between the developer and a possible theater operator must also be completed before applying for the loan, which Maggio expects will occur within two months.

The 12-screen theater and 10,000 square feet of commercial space on a city-owned A Street lot are intended to help revive the city’s moribund downtown.

The studies are expected to be completed by September, and the city hopes to break ground on the theater next spring.

Although a parking study is part of the package required by the federal government, officials say a preliminary survey shows downtown has plenty of available parking.

Critics have said there is not enough parking.

“We’ve got approximately 2,800 parking spaces, both on-street and off-street, for theater use,” Maggio said, adding that 800 are needed if every seat in the theater is occupied. “We figure we’ve got enough, but this will be a detailed analysis and study.”