Robinsons-May Will Leave Sherman Oaks

The Sherman Oaks Galleria has settled an eviction dispute with Robinsons-May, its largest tenant, signing an agreement that paves the way for a major renovation of the mall.

Formerly prosperous and celebrated as a teen hangout in such movies as “Valley Girl” and “Fast Times at Ridgemont High,” the Galleria was the subject of rival lawsuits that sought to assign blame for a decline that transformed the 19-year-old mall from a shopping mecca to a moribund money-loser.

The mall’s owners, a partnership led by Los Angeles-based Douglas Emmett Realty Advisors, blamed Robinsons-May, contending that the department store operator did not adequately staff or stock its two Galleria stores, thus hurting overall business at the mall.

The suit by Douglas Emmett sought to evict Robinsons-May last May, alleging that the company violated its lease when it waited until April 1998 to fully reopen a store damaged in the 1994 Northridge earthquake. The prolonged closure of the third floor of the Robinsons-May store in the mall’s south wing hurt neighboring merchants, the suit claimed.

St. Louis-based May Department Stores, operator of the Robinsons-May chain, denied the allegations and filed a countersuit against Douglas Emmett. That suit alleged that the mall owner violated the lease by failing to attract customers and tenants to the Galleria. The suit said the lease could not be legally terminated until Douglas Emmett compensated Robinsons-May for money spent on the restoration and maintenance of the two stores.

The two companies settled the dispute out of court on Tuesday. Neither side would comment on the terms. Under the agreement, Robinsons-May will vacate the mall by April 1 and reassign its Galleria employees to nearby stores, Robinsons-May spokeswoman Milinda Martin said.

“We feel the settlement was to everyone’s satisfaction,” she said.

The deal allows Douglas Emmett to proceed with plans to reconfigure the center’s retail areas and expand commercial office space at the Galleria, a retail-office complex at the junction of Ventura and Sepulveda boulevards.

The Robinsons-May store at the south end of the mall is to be converted into commercial office space. The other store, facing Ventura Boulevard, will be used for shops and restaurants.

Robinsons-May ended up with two stores in the mall as a result of the 1992 merger of the May Co. and Robinsons chains.