BRINGING RODEO DRIVE TO THE VALLEY WESTFIELD TOPANGA EXPANSION INCLUDES CONCIERGE, LUXURY.Byline: JULIA M. SCOTT Staff Writer CANOGA PARK -- From the moment shoppers enter the new wing of the Westfield Topanga Westfield Topanga, formerly known as the Westfield Shoppingtown Topanga and more commonly known to locals as the Topanga Mall or Topanga Plaza, is a two-story shopping mall consisting of 230 tenants spread across three sections. mall, the atmosphere oozes luxury. A concierge is ready to whisk away Verb 1. whisk away - take away quickly and suddenly whisk off bear away, bear off, carry away, take away, carry off - remove from a certain place, environment, or mental or emotional state; transport into a new location or state; "Their dreams carried the dry cleaning dry cleaning, process of cleaning fabrics without water. Special solvents and soaps are used so as not to harm fabrics and dyes that will not withstand the effects of ordinary soap and water. Dry cleaning began in France about the middle of the 19th cent. or book a restaurant reservation. A personal shopper Personal shopping is a occupation of people who help others shop by giving advice and making suggestions to customers. They are often employed by department stores and boutiques (although some are freelance or work exclusively online). is on hand to navigate racks of clothing. Flatware and china await hungry customers in a food court officials have deemed a ``dining terrace.'' But the perk Westfield executives are betting will hook customers come opening day Oct. 6 is less tangible -- location. ``They're not going to need to drive to Beverly Hills Beverly Hills, city (1990 pop. 31,971), Los Angeles co., S Calif., completely surrounded by the city of Los Angeles; inc. 1914. The largely residential city is home to many motion-picture and television personalities. anymore,'' said Larry Green, a senior development executive at the Westfield Group The Westfield Group is a multinational company that owns shopping centres in Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Westfield shopping centres are typically branded with the name Westfield or Westfield Shoppingtown in their name. , which owns the mall. ``This will be the premier shopping destination.'' The expanded mall could even draw buyers from outside the San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. , said Roberto Barragan, director of the Valley Economic Development Center, a nonprofit devoted to business growth. ``You are going to see people coming from Ventura County and Santa Clarita Santa Clarita, city (1990 pop. 110,642), Los Angeles co., S Calif., suburb 30 mi (48 km) NW of downtown Los Angeles, on the Santa Clara River; inc. 1987. Situated in the Santa Clara valley and nearby canyons, Santa Clarita includes the former towns of Canyon Country, ,'' Barragan said. ``If it didn't happen there it would have happened in Simi Valley Simi Valley (sē`mē, sĭm`ē), city (1990 pop. 100,217), Ventura co., SW Calif. in an oil, fruit, and farm region; laid out 1887, inc. 1969. or Calabasas at some point. Westfield has re-established Topanga Plaza as the premier shopping destination in the Valley.'' The 600,000-square-foot expansion sets plenty of records. When the 1.6-million-square-foot space opens in six weeks, it will be the largest mall in the Valley. The Westfield Group has poured $330 million into the project, the biggest the Australian-based company has ever undertaken. Individual retailers are spending an additional $170 million. More than 60 stores are opening their first Valley locations at Westfield Topanga. A handful, including Hanna Andersson, Ruehl and The Buckle, are new to the entire Los Angeles market. There is plenty of work to do before shoppers set foot in the new wing. During an hourlong tour Tuesday, members of the media joined mall officials for a sneak preview. The space is far from finished. Bare plywood floors shifted underfoot, and stacks of sheet rock waited to be nailed to aluminum studs. The signature architectural feature -- a 300- foot-long glass arch called The Canyon -- held little more than a few rocks. Everything from the construction workers to the live palm trees was laced with dust. But executives on the tour said they weren't worried about completing it on time. ``It's always a very big push to the finish line,'' Green said under the entryway to the new flagship Nordstrom. The old Nordstrom will be demolished and rebuilt to house Neiman Marcus, which will open in fall 2008. Other changes coming to the mall include the rebranding of the Robinsons-May as a Macy's. Both chains are owned by Federated Connected and treated as one. See federated database and federated directories. Department Stores, but the Robinsons-May name is being retired nationwide. The official switch is slated for Sept. 9. The two existing Macy's down the street at the Westfield Promenade will both stay open, Federated officials said earlier this month. The future of the entire Promenade is evident in the type of stores it offers, Green said. ``If you look at the properties that are there,'' he said, ``you can get a feel for where it's going.'' julia.scott(at)dailynews.com (818) 713-3735 CAPTION(S): photo, map Photo: (color) Construction crews work on the new expansion of the Westfield Topanga mall in Woodland Hills on Tuesday morning; the major San Fernando Valley retail project is scheduled to open in October. Tom Mendoza/Staff Photographer Map: Land owned by Westfield |
|
||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion