Panel OKs Hotel Complex Opposed by Disneyland

The Planning Commission on Wednesday voted 7 to 0 to grant a permit for the $500-million Pointe Anaheim retail and hotel complex near Disneyland, which Disney officials have bitterly opposed.

Plans for the 29-acre complex, which calls for 100 stores plus restaurants, nightclubs, three theaters and three hotels, had become ground zero for one of the fiercest development battles in the city’s history.

Although residents and city officials had said that the project would be good for tourism and provide much-needed amenities for city residents, Disney officials had described it as tacky, woefully short on parking and likely to flood key intersections with traffic at rush hour.

The proposed project also would compete directly with the Walt Disney Co.’s planned retail center--called Downtown Disney--which is part of the company’s expansion at Disneyland.

The center is scheduled to open in 2001 along with the company’s second Anaheim theme park, Disney’s California Adventure, which will have a 750-room luxury hotel.