Grove envy spurs Century City mall redesign. (Up Front).

Owners of the Century City shopping center plan a major overhaul of the nearly 30-year-old mall that include moving and expanding the food court and movie complex.

Westfield America Inc., which acquired the 780,645-square-foot Century City Shopping Center a year ago and soon renamed it Westfield Shoppingtown Century City, plans to renovate 71,700 square feet of retail space.

Westfield executives declined comment on details of the project. But local homeowners were told by one Westfield official that the company wants to make Century City so attractive "that no one will even think about shopping at The Grove" (even though that popular recently opened complex is a significant distance from Century City).

As one retail development official put it: "The Grove has forced everyone to get their game together."

The renovation plans are considerably different from those proposed by the center's former owner, Rodamco North America. Rodamco had planned to move Gelson's supermarket to Santa Monica Boulevard and turn the Crate & Barrel store into a super store.

Under the Westfield plan, Gelson's stays in its current location--with some expansion--and AMC Entertainment Inc.'s 14-screen movie complex moves to a spot just west of the Macy's department store where open-air parking currently exists.

In addition, Westfield would dismantle the current food court, considered tired by today's shopping center standards, and relocate it just north of the new two-story movie house that would have stadium seating in every theater.

AMC hasn't decided whether it will add digital projection to the new theaters, said spokesman Rick King, who noted that the Century City complex is one of the company's most successful in Southern California.

The existing food court would be replaced by two or three sit-down restaurants, such as Morels French Steakhouse and Maggiano's, built at 575,000-square-foot Grove. The new restaurants would be located near the new Gulfstream restaurant scheduled to open this spring in the old Dive! restaurant location vacant for years.

Gelson's expansion

While Gelson's remains in its current location, it would add 4,800 square feet of space, incorporating the ramp area on the east side of the market.

"We need to be able to do more things and add more features," said Bob Stiles, Gelson's president. He noted that he would like to build on a sit-down eating space, enlarge the bakery and add to the deli area. "Hopefully in the next few months we'll have things worked out," he said.

The old movie complex would be converted into retail and a second story would be added to the area occupied by the Crate & Barrel store. It is unclear whether Crate & Barrel would stay at the center since it recently opened a flagship store at The Grove.

Crate & Barrel executives would not comment about their Century City plans.

Also unclear is what would happen to Brentano's, a popular bookstore near the movie theater box office.

Although the 14-screen movie complex is one of the most successful in Southern California, it looks dingy compared to The Grove's 14 screens located off an ornate lobby. "The Grove movie theaters have been No. I in terms of gross receipts since it opened," said box-office analyst Robert Bucksbaum, president of Reel Source Inc. in Los Angeles.

From Dec. 20 to Dec. 26, The Grove grossed $437,760 in ticket sales while Century City AMC grossed $349,015.

The shopping center business is all about competition and change. Most malls get a major facelift every 20 years and slight tweaks every 10 years. The Century City mall, built in 1964, hasn't had a major renovation for several years.

But surrounded by affluent neighborhoods and adjacent to high-rise offices, the center last year grossed a little more than $500 a square foot, which is in line with what The Grove is expected to gross.

The approval process for the renovation should go quickly.. The company is expected to get the plans wrapped up in the next 60 to 90 days.

Residents in the Tract 7260 Homeowners Association, just southwest of the Century City center, said they would not oppose the renovation because it doesn't appear to add that much traffic to their area.

Because this is a renovation and not an expansion, the city does not require the developers to do an environmental impact report.

The newly formed Westside Neighborhood Council, which has its first meeting on Jan. 16, will be apprised of the plan. But they are an advisory' group and do not have to approve the plan for the renovation to go forward, said Lisa Hansen, a spokeswoman for Los Angeles Councilman Jack Weiss, who represents the area.

The center will have to get the required building permits from the city's Department of Building and Safety.