NEW PROPOSAL SURFACES OWNERS OF GALLERIA PROPOSE ALTERNATIVE TO APPROVED PROJECT.

Byline: Naush Boghossian Staff Writer

GLENDALE - Owners of the Glendale Galleria presented their counterproposal Tuesday for the proposed Town Center retail and housing complex, but included no cost estimates for its construction.

The unsolicited proposal by mall giant General Growth Properties comes despite developer Rick Caruso already having received approval for his $172 million project from Glendale's Redevelopment Agency.

``Our goal is to get our plan out there and make sure that our Town Center plan is the one that gets built,'' said Carol Jacobs, group vice president of management for General Growth. ``We feel so strongly that we have the right project.''

City officials maintained on Tuesday that Caruso is still the official developer of the Town Center project, which would be located adjacent to the Glendale Galleria.

``Caruso is the developer of record who we've worked with for two years and General Growth's proposal I take as input to Caruso,'' City Manager Jim Starbird said.

Caruso, of Caruso Affiliated Holdings, said he would battle the unsolicited proposal.

The General Growth proposal calls for less retail space, more housing and a design that would connect more openly to the existing mall. It also would keep intact buildings the city has classified as historic.

Company officials said they would submit the new proposal as an alternate in the environmental impact review process for Caruso's approved project.

Glendale Councilman Bob Yousefian said the city does not yet consider General Growth as a legitimate contender for the project because no cost estimates have been provided - no construction costs, no estimates of city subsidies required nor how much in yearly tax revenues the complex will generate for the city.

``That's the straw that's going to break the camel's back - that will be the deciding factor - the money,'' Yousefian said. ``For me, it's just a design and nothing more. They need to give me the information to be able to make an educated decision.''

General Growth officials said they they were confident their numbers would add up, and hoped to address some of the city's financial questions at Tuesday's redevelopment agency meeting, when they will present their plans.

``Economically, we're not going to waste the city's time. We feel confident the numbers are going to work,'' said Arthur Sohikian, senior vice president of the communications company representing General Growth.

Mall officials touted their counterproposal as having 15 percent more public space, 28 percent more green space, free parking, 35 percent more housing, more civic space and more pedestrian and vehicular mobility than Caruso's approved plans.

The Galleria attracts 25 million visitors each year and generates $500 million in sales, officials said.

Councilman Dave Weaver said no matter what kind of financial proposal General Growth officials make, he will not support them in their bid to develop Town Center, especially since Caruso has made several concessions in his plans, while the mall has made no changes.

``Any Johnny-come-lately comes in and throws out a whole bunch of assumptions without numbers - sorry, it's too late in the game,'' Weaver said. ``They're still a fortress, and they're only projecting opening up on Central.''

Mall officials have contended all along that Caruso's 16-acre project next to the mall between Central Avenue and Brand Boulevard, which will receive about $60 million in city subsidies, is too self-contained and fails to link with surrounding businesses.

Jack Kyser, chief economist for the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp., said the city ultimately must decide what is the most viable development for Glendale.

``With Caruso having a terrific track record and this project something bright, fresh, new and exciting, the Galleria is afraid that they would lose a lot of casual shoppers,'' Kyser said. ``The Galleria has been very aggressive in making sure they freshen up its array of shops, but it's tough out there in retail land.''

Naush Boghossian, [phone]

naush.boghossian(at)dailynews.com

CAPTION(S):

photo, map

Photo:

(color) An artist's rendering of a proposal by Galleria owners calls for less retail space, more housing and a design that would connect more openly to the existing mall.

Map:

Town Center

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