City reaches deal with downtown property owner
Paul Clinton
BURBANK VILLAGE -- The City Council, acting as the Redevelopment
Agency, approved a deal with Ed Giamela Tuesday to acquire the landlord’s
downtown property.
Giamela has agreed to sell his land to the agency to make way for the
$76-million Burbank Entertainment Village project that will be anchored
by a 16-screen AMC Theatres complex.
Giamela will sell his 7,750 square foot parcel to the agency for
$505,000, Redevelopment Project Manager Jack Lynch said.
Along with Fast Lane Boardshop owner Dan Wonser, Giamela had
previously resisted selling his property to the agency. The city and
Giamela had traded offers for several months without reaching a deal.
Once the agency formally notifies Giamela of the sale, his two tenants
-- Stevenson Gun Country and Mingo’s Barber Shop -- will have 90 days to
vacate their shops, Lynch said.
Construction on the AMC Theatres project -- which will also include
restaurants and a health club -- is scheduled to begin in May.
Project developers AMC and Center Oak Properties have paid the agency
$2.4 million to acquire the Giamela and Wonser properties. Wonser turned
down the agency’s most recent offer of $650,000 for his 4,800 square foot
property.
The remaining money from AMC, approximately $1.3 million, will go
toward relocation expenses, Lynch said.