Burlington decries city takeover of mall project

Kenneth Ma

HUNTINGTON BEACH -- The city’s move to place the redevelopment of the

Huntington Beach Mall under its wing has a local department store crying

foul.

Earlier this month, the city joined its Redevelopment Agency as an

applicant for the specific plan of the Crossings at Huntington, which is

being developed by Ezralow Retail Properties LLC. The specific plan,

approved Tuesday by the Planning Commission, is a detailed zoning plan

that is necessary for the project to move forward.

Burlington Coat Factory filed a lawsuit against Ezralow in May seeking to

remain a tenant at the mall and asking for up to $50 million in damages

for breach of contract because the store is not included in plans for the

center. The suit, which also names Ezralow affiliate Huntington Center

Associates, also asked for an injunction against Ezralow to keep it from

redeveloping the center until the matter is settled.

Judge S. Latimer Gould ruled last week against a temporary restraining

order.

Aviv Tuchman, Burlington Coat Factory’s lawyer, said the judge denied the

order because the city of Huntington Beach had joined its Redevelopment

Agency as applicants to redesign the mall instead of Ezralow.

A restraining order against Ezralow is not possible, the judge ruled,

because it is no longer the applicant.

Ezralow “told us that if we don’t play ball with them, they will get the

city to do their dirty work, and they have made good on their promise,”

Tuchman said.

The city’s planning director, Howard Zelefsky, said the city always

becomes an applicant on specific plans if the property has multiple

owners in order to coordinate zoning guidelines. Ezralow owns most of the

property, but Montgomery Ward, another department store at the mall, owns

about 13.5 acres and Southern California Edison owns a small portion.

The Redevelopment Agency, comprised of City Council members, is involved

in the project because it lies in a redevelopment area, said David Biggs,

the city’s economic development director.

Tuchman said the city’s action was illegal and that Burlington may

consider filing a separate lawsuit against the city.

Jim Hughes, Ezralow’s lawyer, said the charges made by Burlington about

the breach of contract are untrue.

“Burlington’s claims against Huntington Center Associates are without

merit, and the statements of Burlington and its counsel in the press

regarding Huntington Beach Center Associates are incorrect, period,” he

said.

The Planning Commission tabled a vote on the specific plan June 13,

moving the vote to Tuesday night.

Planning Commissioner Bob Biddle said it seems “fishy” that the city

would change the applicant’s name on a project in the middle of the

process instead of at the beginning.

He said the a memo from City Administrator Ray Silver confirming the

change of applicant came out June 5, days after a public notification was

released for a Planning Commission meeting on the mall project.

“To me, it’s unethical that you would change something five or six days

after the public notification,” Biddle said.

Most of the commissioners, he said, decided to table a decision on

approving a permit for Ezralow to redevelop the mall because of the

memo.Biggs said the purpose of the memo was to ensure the specific plan

process moves forward smoothly.

“We don’t want the process of approving a specific plan to be delayed

because of a dispute between two private parties,” Biggs said.

“Burlington’s attorneys call everything illegal. All this letter writing

and complaining is Burlington posturing themselves to get in the best

position.”

On Monday the City Council, acting as the Redevelopment Agency, voted 6

to 0 to select Ezralow as the developer to remodel the mall. Biggs said

Ezralow was selected because they submitted a comprehensive plan to

redevelop the mall and because of their expertise. Burlington and

Montgomery Wards also submitted plans.

Many tenants of the aging mall have left since Ezralow made its purchase.

Most tenants, including Burlington, did not have their leases renewed.

Ezralow, which bought the property last year, plans to redevelop the

moribund Huntington Beach Mall into an Italian village design that will

include upscale stores and restaurants, and an 18-screen movie theater,

company President Douglas Gray said.

Most people in Huntington Beach, city officials said, would like to see

the mall improved in the near future.

“We have a chance to bring to the people of Huntington Beach something

similar but different from the Block [in Orange] and the [Irvine]

Spectrum,” City Administrator Ray Silver said. “We believe the market

supports that kind of use in this part of the county.”