Rick Caruso has agreed to pay for a revision of the environmental impact report for the Shops at Santa Anita, the proposed mall development on the parking lot of the Santa Anita Park race track. The original environmental impact report cost almost $1 million. The new revision will require new studies and new public meetings and could cost another 6-figure amount.
Rick Caruso writes to the editor in response to the article "Arcadia braces for possible mall wars at Santa Anita." He says it will not be a war but an integrated project that should benefit his property and Westfield Shoppingtown.
Rouben A. Yardemian owns a retail store at Westfield Shoppingtown Santa Anita. He writes in response to Rick Caruso's letter that there will not be "mall wars." Yardemian believes Arcadia is not big enough for two malls.
Westfield Group has vowed not to donate to City Council campaigns in the April 2006 election, joining mall rival Rick Caruso and Caruso Affiliated, who made a similar pledge in September.
Westfield, Santa Anita Shoppingtown, and Santa Anita Fashion Park, are the three plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the City of Arcadia, the City Council, and developer Rick Caruso, aimed at stopping the new mall The Shops at Santa Anita. Plaintiffs allege the environmental study done was flawed. Assistant City Manager Don Penman said the study was the most thorough one he had ever seen.
Arcadia City Council voted unanimously to give the final approval on Rick Caruso's The Shops at Santa Anita mall. The City Council also approved an expansion project for the Westfield mall with one condition.
Mall developer Rick Caruso has announced that he has removed 300 apartments from the proposed Shops at Santa Anita. Arcadians were concerned that the housing at the mall would contribute to overcrowding at Arcadia High School. Without the apartments, the project will be an open air mall instead of a mixed use development.
The mall war continues as each side publishes public poll results. Westfield conducted a poll showing 57% of 400 respondents opposed to the new mall. Caruso did not release full results of its survey.
Seen as retaliation for Westfield tactics, Caruso Affiliated announced it would ask Arcadia voters to block mall rival Westfield from leasing space to Target Stores or a similar "big box" discounter.
Developer Rick Caruso's $400 million open-air mall at the Santa Anita Park race track may be stiff competition for retailers at Westfield Shoppingtown. City leaders hope the two malls can coexist.
A court hearing today will provide clarification on Judge James Chalfant's July ruling that stopped progress on an upscale mall proposed by developer Rick Caruso at the Santa Anita Park parking lot. The proposed mall is known as the Shops at Santa Anita. In July, Judge Chalfant ruled that the environmental impact report (EIR) that Arcadia officials relied upon in approving the mall was faulty in 11 areas and would have to be revised before the project can move forward. Chalfant could modify his ruling today, or allow the existing ruling to become final judgment.
Rick Caruso faces off with Westfield Group's Kenneth Wong at a City Council meeting. Some 350 Arcadia residents came to hear about the proposed expansion of Westfield Shoppingtown and Caruso's outdoor lifestyle center.
Developer Rick Caruso and his company are soliciting the Arcadia community's thoughts on his $400 million mall project slated for the parking lot of Santa Anita Park. A "scoping session" designed to solicit public views on what should be included in the environmental review will take place at City Council chambers at 7pm on April 7, 2005.
In a 50-page ruling issued Wednesday, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge James C. Chalfant found the environmental impact report (EIR) faulty in 11 areas ranging from traffic to air quality. This means Caruso's mall project is stalled until changes are made to the EIR.
Judge James A. Chalfant heard arguments yesterday on two petitions challenging the adequacy of an environmental impact study done for a proposed upscale Arcadia mall, known as The Shops at Santa Anita, developed by Rick Caruso of Caruso Affiliated. The complicated nature of the case could delay a ruling.
Developer Rick Caruso is planning two massive "lifestyle centers" on either side of Pasadena: one in Glendale and one in Arcadia. Pasadena officials say they may start thinking about dealing with the increased competition for Pasadena's shopping dollars.
Westfield Shoppingtown has hired one of the largest law firms in Los Angeles--Latham and Watkins, to slow developer Rick Caruso's proposal to build a mall on he grounds of the adjacent Santa Anita Park race track.
Caruso and Westfield are still battling over the proposed Caruso lifestyle center. A decade ago the race track's south parking lot had been rezoned for commercial development. Rick Caruso feels his development will help Westfield while Westfield believes a new mall will cannibalize tenants and harm both companies and the city's sales tax revenues.
Developer Rick Caruso spoke to a crowd of more than 800 people at the Arcadia Masonic Temple about plans for The Shops at Santa Anita at a Planning Commission meeting. The public was invited to voice their opinions in 3-minute blocks of time. Caruso had supporters among police and firefighters unions, Chamber of Commerce, Arcadia Unified School District, several homeowners associations, and city officials. 369 people at the meeting signed a petition opposing the project.