Controversial Pasadena Retail Project Approved
The Pasadena City Council has approved a controversial plan to build an entertainment and retail complex around the Macy’s on South Lake Avenue, on condition that the owners of the department store upgrade it.
Construction of the $32-million project is expected to begin this summer, barring legal challenges that could tie it up in court.
“This process had been going on for a long time and we are very happy,” said Victor Grgas, director of planning for Forest City, a Cleveland-based developer that is a partner in the project with Federated Department Stores, owner of Macy’s.
The long, contentious approval process for the South Lake Retail Project came to an end early Tuesday in the Pasadena Civic Auditorium, where the council met to accommodate an audience of nearly 400 people.
It was the 33rd public meeting on the project that was first proposed 2 1/2 years ago.
The plan, approved on a 4-2 vote, calls for a seven-theater movie complex and a number of retail shops to be built around Macy’s, which occupies the old Bullock’s department store, a registered national historic site.
The project has angered preservationists and neighbors, but business leaders touted it as a way to revive the faded shopping district.
In a last-minute move, Mayor Chris Holden introduced an amendment to the tax incentive portion of the agreement.
The developers had asked for sales tax reimbursements from the city to make the project financially viable.
The council approved the tax incentive on the condition that Macy’s make a strong financial commitment to upgrade the store and keep it in line with South Lake’s upscale tradition.
“We need to be assured that the Federated group, not just the developer, is going to meet an upscale standard,” Holden said Wednesday.
“There is a feeling by some, and by Macy’s own admission, that [the South Lake] store is considered on the low rung of Macy’s stores.”
Jack Chestnut, executive vice president of Macy’s West, told the council Monday that his company was committed to investing “significant monies” to restore the store if the project passed, but could not provide specifics.
“My frustration was, ‘What are you doing then? Why isn’t somebody there to make a commitment?’ ” Holden said.
South Lake’s ritzy tradition has been an underlying issue in the controversy.
A Ross Dress for Less store that opened across from Macy’s in 1995 was a recurring subject in the heated public debate over the Macy’s project and was used as ammunition by both proponents and foes of the development. One side saw the project as a way to avoid more such discount stores; the other said the city could not be trusted after the approval of Ross.
“South Lake is our Rodeo Drive,” Holden said. “South Lake has always been perceived as upscale, but in recent years, it has been going in the wrong direction.”
Holden said the amendment did not set an amount for Macy’s to invest in the store but required that it provide the council with a plan to improve the store’s interior structure and to bring in higher-quality merchandise.
A spokeswoman for Federated, Mary Ann Shannon, declined to comment, except to say:
“We are waiting for Forest City to get back with us to clarify exactly what the amendment that was passed by council means.”
