Retail tenants eye space despite growth strictures.

One major Oxnard project awaits city council approval

A shopping center with Wal-Mart as one of its anchor tenants could soon be built in Oxnard if its developer succeeds in getting officials from the behemoth retailer to sign a lease agreement, and if the project receives city approval.

The project proposed by Sherman Oaks-based Rothbart Development Corp., named Shopping at the Rose, would encompass 524,000-square-foot on 56 acres. The planned project would have six anchor tenants and cost an estimated $50 million to build.

One anchor tenant would be a 146,500-square-foot Wal-Mart and another would be a Sam's Club, which is also owned by Wal-Mart, said Rothbart Development President Stan Rothbart.

However, Wal-Mart has not yet made a commitment to the project, according to a Wal-Mart official. "We are looking into the area," but have no information regarding a specific site, said Wal-Mart spokeswoman Sany Brummett.

But Rothbart said the shopping center is being planned with the two Bentonville, Ark.-based Wal-Mart Stores Inc. tenants in mind.

The project's environmental impact report is currently being examined at public hearings, said Richard Maggio, community development director for the City of Oxnard. The project then will go to the city's planning commission and City Council for approval. If it's approved, groundbreaking will occur this fall, Rothbart said.

The entire project will take between eight and 12 months to build, he added, and is being constructed on open fields in the southwest quadrant of the intersection of Rose Avenue and the Ventura (101) freeway.

There was some community opposition to the project during its early stages, Rothbart conceded, but most of that has dissipated.

Much of the opposition came from a neighborhood adjacent to the proposed project, but the plans have since been revised to mitigate any potential problems, Rothbart said.

For instance, the plans include a 30-foot landscape buffer between the proposed center and the residences, along with a solid, decorative wall, he said. Also, all of the proposed buildings have been set back a minimum of 100 feet from the residences, Rothbart said.

The shopping center could be a boon to the city, Maggio said, noting that it would generate more sales tax revenue and jobs.

Also, many Oxnard residents who currently shop in other parts of Ventura County would now spend their dollars in their own home town, which would help the city's economy, Maggio said.

And, although Oxnard is Ventura County's most highly populated city, it currently generates only the third highest amount of sales tax revenue, he said.

The retail project would also generate at least 250 jobs in the city, Maggio said.

There are currently three regional malls in Ventura County. These are the Oaks Shopping Center in Thousand Oaks, the Buena Ventura Mall in the City of Ventura and the Esplanade in Oxnard.

The Oaks is a 1 million-square-foot indoor mall occupied by Broadway, Bullock's, JC Penney, May Co. and Robinson's. The mall currently has a 2 percent vacancy rate and its year-to-date sales are up 2 percent over the same period in 1991, said General Manager Barbara Teuscher.

Many smaller tenants whose leases expire in 1993 aren't going to renew, leaving 80,000 square feet up for grabs, Teuscher said. The mall has secured commitments from several small retailers to fill the space, but Teuscher would not name them.

The Buena Ventura Mall, meanwhile, is a 826,000-square-foot indoor facility with 90 stores and the Broadway, JC Penney and Montgomery Ward & Co. as anchor tenants. The mall is 91 percent leased and its year-to-date sales are 8 percent higher than a year earlier, said mall manager Cayse Osterlund.

The mall has undergone two separate renovations, one in 1989 and one in 1991, in which its original side wings were demolished and replaced with new ones, Osterlund said.

The Esplanade is a 650,000-square-foot mall with more than 80 stores and two anchor tenants, May Co. and Sears Roebuck & Co. It currently has a 5 percent vacancy rate and its year-to-date sales are 3.8 percent off from the same period in 1991.

Although there are no major retailers based in Ventura County, the region does boast some medium-sized retailers.

Ventura-based Kinko's Copy Centers is a privately held network of partnerships that operates 622 copy outlets in the United States, eight in Canada and two in Japan, said Adrianna Foss, vice president of operations.

The retailer has 11,000 employees worldwide and half of its stores are open 24 hours per day. The company is currently focusing on its international expansion plans, Foss said.

Overall in Ventura County, the retail vacancy rate increased from 9.3 percent during fourth quarter 1991 to 9.7 percent during first quarter 1992, according to statistics compiled by Grubb & Ellis Co.