Home Depot, Mann Theatre to Anchor Project at GM Site

By HUGO MARTIN

July 2, 1997 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

PANORAMA CITY —

The conversion of the General Motors site from a former automobile manufacturing plant to a $100-million shopping center took a key step forward Tuesday with the unveiling of blueprints for the project and commitments from most of the retail and commercial tenants.

Despite lingering concerns about crime and blight in the neighborhood, city officials and developers who teamed up to launch the project said 90% of the retail and commercial portion of the project has been leased.

To retain a link to the site’s former identity, Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan and City Councilman Richard Alarcon said the development along Van Nuys Boulevard will be called The Plant.

“We used every bit of our four years of our first term to get this deal done, and today I’m here to tell you that we are here, that this deal is done,” said a smiling Alarcon, who worked along with Riordan’s office to help get the project off the ground.

The project will be anchored by a 105,000-square-foot Home Depot store and a 16-screen Mann’s Theatre. Among the 11 other tenants announced Monday are national retail chain stores that sell clothing, children’s toys, office supplies, shoes and electronics.

A ceremonial groundbreaking is expected within 90 days, with the grand opening scheduled for the spring of 1998. During construction, the project is expected to create 1,500 temporary construction jobs. Once completed, it is estimated to generate 2,000 permanent full-time jobs.

The city helped move the project along by securing a $4-million federal grant to build the streets, sidewalks and other improvements around the project. A state tax credit will benefit retailers, who will be able to write off nearly half of the salaries of employees they hire within a designated “recovery area” surrounding the site.

“This is a symbol that the San Fernando Valley is not just back, but better,” said Riordan during a news conference at the empty, grass-covered lot that was once the GM plant.

Dennis Linville, a General Motors representative, said the city’s cooperation in the project has been vital.

“This is the fastest approval process we have ever heard of for a project like this,” he said.

But not everything is moving along smoothly. Alarcon has long promised that the development would include a police station to address neighborhood concerns about crime.

GM officials donated five acres on the site for the station but Alarcon has yet to secure the estimated $25 million to $30 million needed to build a fully staffed station on the site. So far, Alarcon said he has set aside at least $2.25 million in local grant and earthquake repair funds to build the station.

One funding source for the station could be a $465-million bond measure that Riordan has proposed to expand and build new police and fire facilities. The bond could be on the ballot as early as November, but prospects for voter approval are uncertain, considering that a similar bond was rejected last year.

Until a station is built, the developers have promised to provide 2,500 square feet of office space to house a community service center for police near the 16-screen theater.

Still, supporters of the GM project were optimistic that the development will create a positive “Domino effect” along the economically troubled Van Nuys Boulevard corridor.

Even the local homeowners group--which has repeatedly locked horns with City Hall over development in the Valley--voiced its support for the project.

“This area needed General Motors to come back with something big,” said Don Schultz, president of the Van Nuys Homeowners Assn. “You couldn’t oppose something like this for what it means to both Panorama City and Van Nuys.”

For nearly 45 years, the GM site was a symbol of the Valley’s economic might. Before it closed in 1992, it was among the Valley’s largest employers. But when it was shuttered due to restructuring and downsizing at GM, it displaced more than 2,600 jobs.

For several years after the closure, city officials worked with GM representatives to find a buyer to develop the site and replace lost jobs. It wasn’t until February 1996 that city officials announced a deal with the team of Selleck Properties and Voit Cos. to develop the 68-acre site.

Most of the new jobs created by the development are not expected to pay as well or provide benefits comparable to those offered by General Motors. But Riordan and Alarcon said the jobs will nonetheless provide an economic boost to the community.

The project will include 35 acres of commercial development and 30 acres of light industrial development. Robert Voit, president of Voit Cos., said he could not release the names of the tenants for the industrial portion of the project but said they would include small manufacturers, many of whom already operate in other facilities near the GM site.

Chuck Goldwater, chief executive officer of Mann’s Theatres, said his company was interested in the GM project in part because there are few other quality movie houses in the Van Nuys area.

The 16-screen theater will be the second-largest cinema in the Valley.

Goldwater added that he is not concerned about crime in the area or that plans for a police station are still uncertain.

“There are far more victories in this community than there are crimes,” he said.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Shopping at ‘The Plant’

The tenants of The Plant will include:

Home Depot: 105,000 square feet

Mann’s Theatres: 72,000

Babys R Us: 38,500 square feet

Ross Dress for Less: 27,200

Office Max: 23,500 square feet

Party City: 11,000 square feet