Wal-Mart center goes before county

| Monday, June 17, 2002 10:00 PM PDT ∞

WYATT HAUPT
Staff Writer

RIVERSIDE ---- A $39 million project that would lead to the restoration of historic Vail Ranch and the development of a roughly 428,000-square-foot area shopping center that has drawn the ire of some residents is expected to be reviewed this afternoon by county supervisors.

The development by Price Legacy of San Diego calls for about 47 acres near Apis Road and Highway 79 South to be transformed into the Redhawk Towne Center, which would consist of several restaurants and retail stores anchored by a nearly 150,000-square-foot Wal-Mart that could be expanded by another 75,000 square feet. Supervisors are scheduled to review and vote on the proposal at 1:30 p.m. at the County Administrative Center, 4080 Lemon St., Riverside.

Design plans include a movie theater and two large department stores, with those spots expected to be filled by Kohl's department store and a Ross Dress for Less store. However, Price Legacy no longer wants to include the theater.

If approved, the town center proposal would then head to the county's Land Development Committee for another hearing on Thursday, said Bill Stone, senior vice president of Price Legacy.

At that point, Price Legacy would then submit proposed changes to the committee that, if approved, would eliminate the theater and establish another department store site. The committee, which is comprised of county planners, has the final say on any changes submitted to them after the board approves such projects.

"First, the board has to approve the plans," Stone said. "Then we are scheduled to appear before the land committee to ask for the change ... if they agree, we wouldn't be required to go back before the board."

The development could be open in the spring. The project breaks down into two parts with $30 million being spent on the main development and $9 million dedicated toward restoring Vail Ranch.

The four-acre ranch site is home to historical buildings such as the Wolf Store, which was built in 1868 and once served as a general store, trading post, courthouse and stagecoach stop.

The county would use proceeds from a tax-sharing agreement with the city of Temecula ---- that both sides previously agreed to ---- in order to help pay for the restoration of the ranch with Price Legacy footing the rest of the bill. Temecula plans on using its share of the money to help pay for municipal services the city is providing to the Vail Ranch community, which it annexed July 1.

"I think Price Legacy is going to do a very good job," said Dick Diamond, a member of the Riverside County Historic Commission and former member of the Vail Ranch Restoration Association.

The development does have its detractors. A group of Southwest County residents known as Citizens First of Temecula Valley, co-founded by resident Michelle Anderson, filed a lawsuit in 2000 in Riverside County Superior Court claiming that traffic studies used in determining the impact the shopping center would have on the area were outdated.

The group also claimed that Price Legacy, formerly known as Price Enterprises Inc., was getting away with not spending an estimated $1 million in local road improvements. Anderson could not be reached for comment Monday.

Last June, a judge ordered additional studies. Those revised studies were part of an environmental review document the county was taking comment on until late May for the project. If supervisors and the land committee approve the project and subsequent changes, Price Legacy will head back to Superior Court asking that it allow the project to move ahead.

Contact staff writer Wyatt Haupt at (909) 676-4315, Ext. 2615, or whaupt@nctimes.com.

6/18/02