`BEAUTIFUL DOWNTOWN BURBANK' : AMBITIOUS INNOVATIONS IN PLANNING AND DESIGN TRANSFORMED LATE-NIGHT TV BUTT OF JOKES INTO TRENDY DESTINATION.

Byline: GREGORY J. WILCOX Real Deals

Johnny Carson got lots of late-night laughs at the expense of ``beautiful downtown Burbank.'' An arched eyebrow and incredulous expression told a nation of insomniacs he was only kidding about the city's panache. Downtown Burbank was really Blandtown, U.S.A.

Never mind that Mickey Mouse and Buggs Bunny also call it home.

Frank Gangi, whose family has been building homes, offices and retail establishments in the area for more than 50 years, saw the reality in the mirth.

``It was the laughingstock,'' Gangi said of the city's downtown.

Not anymore.

Would you believe downtown Burbank is now hip?

Civic chest thumpers are even using the word ``upscale'' to describe the area. And they aren't kidding.

It's taken about 16 years and millions of dollars to transform the downtown into a dining, shopping and work destination much like Old Town Pasadena, Santa Monica's Third Street Promenade and Long Beach's Pine Avenue.

The newest downtown development, Burbank Village, opened last week. It's a $20 million commercial, retail and residential complex in which most of the space was preleased, said Gangi, president of Gangi Development Co., which developed the property.

``At this point, it's a true urban village,'' Gangi said of the area. ``And the thing that makes it different from many other downtowns is that Burbank actually has a housing community. People are living above the retail shops.''

Gangi's project consists of a 146-unit, low-income seniors apartment complex called Silver Winds Burbank. The apartments, all preleased, sit atop 55,000 square-feet of street-level retail space and a three-level underground parking garage. There is also about 6,000 square-feet of office space.

Rents are fixed at $419 to $600 monthly.

``The retail component was the most attractive because it was basically a market-rate deal where the housing is all rent-restricted,'' Gangi said. ``This was a perfect opportunity to demonstrate how mixed-use retail and housing can work together, particularly in an area like Los Angeles where housing and retail are seen as such separate elements.''

About 80 percent of the retail space has already been leased.

Media Village is anchored by Gitana, a 20,000-square-foot upscale restaurant, sports bar and billiards and night club. Other tenants include Gourmet 88 Seafood, Penguins Place frozen yogurt, Paper Moon Crepeorie, Comfort by Design furniture store and Blue Royale Brazilian Steak House.

Ross Business Institute, a computer training school, has leased the office space.

The project was not without controversy.

In 1995, two City Council members tried to block the sale of the 2.3-acre parcel because they thought the land was worth more than the $2 million price. But the property, the former site of a Pic `N' Save store, was purchased by Burbank's Redevelopment Agency with money from its affordable housing fund.

That meant affordable housing had to be part of any development plan, which made the parcel less valuable.

The most recent concern centered on locating a sprawling nightclub under seniors' homes. Only time will tell if these two diverse uses can enjoy a peaceful co-existence.

``People don't get the nexus of why we're allowing a nightclub below senior housing. It just doesn't seem very compatible,'' said Bill Emmett, a city redevelopment project analyst who worked on Media Village.

He characterizes the restaurant as a high-end establishment.

``It's really a good use for the downtown area. I think the night club and restaurant is a better use of the downtown area than the senior housing. But more people seem to have a problem with the nightclub going in than the senior housing,'' he said.

Nevertheless, Larry Kosmont, a partner in Los Angeles-based Kosmont & Associates, a commercial and industrial real estate consulting firm, said that the opening of the new project is just another step Burbank took to scale up its image.

And he gets some personal satisfaction from Burbank's evolution.

Kosmont was the city's redevelopment director from 1983 to 1986. He acquired the 40-acre parcel that the downtown shopping center was built on, suggested opening San Fernando Road to through traffic, and negotiated the original deals with the AMC Theater chain and Fudruckers Restaurant.

Kosmont also helped the city relocate more than 80 businesses and 200 residences.

Now he thinks the downtown area is well on its way to being a success. But while the area is hip, it still needs some stores like The Gap and Banana Republic that have national name recognition.

``It's gone 80 percent of the distance. On a scale of one to 10, if Old Town Pasadena or Santa Monica's Third Street are 10s, the Burbank is certainly an eight,'' he said. ``Downtown Burbank is a vital, exciting place to be. It has turned the corner on critical mass, and you have activities and enough people to make it a consistent success story.''

And yes, Kosmont said, Carson's words finally do ring true.

BROKER BUZZ

Chalk Hill LLC paid $5.8 million for a 57,661-square-foot building at 20335 Ventura Blvd. in Woodland Hills. The seller was John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Co. Brian Foster of Told Partners represented Chalk Hills. Richard Plummer and Steve Algermissen of Cushman & Wakefield represented John Hancock. The four-story building is 70 percent leased.

Professional Building Maintenance Co., recently ranked among the nation's top 500 Latino-owned companies, paid $1.3 million for a 19,300-square-foot building in North Hollywood as part of an expansion. The company has already moved into its new building at 8155 Lankershim Blvd. It was formerly headquartered in Sun Valley. Bob Hoyer of Delphi Business Properties represented Professional Building and Bill Kogel of Told Properties represented the seller, Don Marks. Professional Building is a maintenance and janitorial supply firm.

Daum Commercial Real Estate Services represented ECCO!, an art gallery, in a three-year lease for 1,400 square-feet of space at 966 Westlake Blvd. in Westlake Village. Terms were not announced. Saralee Baldwin of Daum's Ventura County office represented ECCO!.

The Coldwell Banker building at 1190 South Victoria Ave. in Ventura is getting a $500,000 face lift. The project should be completed by the end of September, said Steve Fedde, vice president of development and operations for Sares-Regis Group, which bought the building in March. The renovation includes new electrical and air conditions systems.

The company also recently completed a 39,000-square-foot building in Oxnard at Rice Avenue and Gonzales Road.

The Los Angeles City Housing Authority is one of 100 organizations nationwide to receive one of the first Best Practice Awards from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The award is given to organizations deemed to have ``outstanding and innovative'' approaches to housing programs.

CAPTION(S):

9 Photos, Map

PHOTO (1--Color) Developer Frank Gangi stands outside his company's Media Village, a mix of retail and residential in downtown Burbank.

Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer

(2--9--Color) no caption (Various scenes of downtown Burbank)

MAP: Site of Burbank Village