A man on a mission: Former Temecula planning director continues to promote merits of mixed-use development

By: BRIAN ECKHOUSE - Staff Writer | Sunday, September 9, 2007 8:11 PM PDT ∞

Gary Thornhill's mission has changed little, despite his retirement from Temecula City Hall last December.

He remains the rare crusader of downtown revitalization through "mixed-use" development -- traditionally apartments or condominiums over first-floor shops and restaurants. But in the sprawl of Southern California, Thornhill recognizes there is little room for traditional mixed-use development outside of the downtown corridors of Temecula, his home city, and Murrieta.

"I've always looked at it as a chance to create (a community's) heart," said Thornhill, a longtime Temecula planning director and assistant city manager.

In his new role as a consultant to developers, Thornhill hopes to promote both horizontal and vertical mixed-use projects -- just as he had done for so many years within the chambers of Temecula City Hall. In switching jobs -- but not necessarily objectives -- he began a "new phase" of his life after three decades as a government official, including 17 years in Temecula.

Because Thornhill has earned a comfortable living and pension, he says his primary motivation isn't earning a salary, but promoting sustainable development. He plans to be selective of the projects he chooses -- a luxury not shared by all other area development consultants.

"I'm trying to find people who have the same passion as me," said Thornhill, referring to developers. "But it's hard: There aren't a lot of ... investors who are willing to risk money on something unproven."

In his first project as a development consultant, the 60-year-old Thornhill recently pitched a mixed-use development in northern Murrieta across 53 acres at the northeast corner of Jefferson Avenue and Lemon Street. The pedestrian-friendly "village," dubbed Plaza de Murrieta, would be anchored by dozens of townhouse-style condominiums and featuring an adjoining marketplace and small parks spread throughout.

Sustainability

"People need to think more about sustainability," said Thornhill, referring to the concept of conserving energy and time by grouping residences, shops and jobs together.

But Thornhill -- whose "fingerprint" is all over Temecula, said City Councilman Mike Naggar -- isn't ignorant of the challenge that's been before him for nearly two decades.

"Americans want a single-family home, so it'd take a real change of thinking," he said. "I'm not sure Southern California is ready for it. Maybe Portland and Seattle are ready for it.

"The perception among people in this area is that downtowns are not safe. Unfortunately, in some parts of Southern California, that may not be untrue."

Murrieta City Councilman Rick Gibbs has backed Plaza de Murrieta, which some hope could be a trendsetter to ease the sprawl of Southwest Riverside County. At the very least, the project -- if ultimately approved -- would finally realize a plan among former Murrieta leaders to mix uses on a single parcel, Gibbs said.

"This project is everything that this city was looking for years ago ... and didn't get," Gibbs said. "This is a chance to do it right."

But it's doubtful Plaza de Murrieta's model will become as widespread as past leaders envisioned, in part because most of the city has already been developed. Also, some current Murrieta leaders are reluctant to add more housing units to a city they contend is cluttered with them.

Last week, the Murrieta council approved a broad outline of Plaza de Murrieta's plan, but the finer details of the project still need to be approved.

A new trend?

Murrieta City Manager Ron Bradley, who held that same position in Temecula in the 1990s, said the East Coast is more conducive to clustered villages because of "greater densities and better transportation systems." Bradley was Thornhill's boss when the Murrieta city manager held the same office in Temecula in the mid-1990s.

But Thornhill's preferred developmental model isn't completely unknown in Southwest Riverside County. Two walkable developments in Temecula -- one on Highway 79 South, the other being built on Rancho California Road -- incorporate shops along the thoroughfares with condos away from the roads.

"There's an interesting paradigm shift going on," Naggar said. "People want to work and play as close to home as possible."

That's a stark departure from a national trend that began upon the explosion of suburbia after World War II, particularly in Southern California. The advent of the interstate highway system in the 1950s encouraged Americans to flee dense cities for what was believed -- or hoped -- to be more comfortable lifestyles with more land to roam on.

"People wanted to get away from the density and smog," Naggar said. "But the paradigm shifts appear to have the best of those worlds: People don't mind crowds if there's something to do; and people don't mind crowds if there's no traffic."

Progress in Old Town

Old Town Temecula's newest buildings right off Front Street are three- or four-story buildings mixing residential units with elite restaurants, coffee houses or shops.

"It's been my passion for 17 or 18 years," Thornhill said of downtown development, "and to see it finally become what it could be is wonderful."

But some of the past development along Front Street isn't characteristic of the downtown Thornhill has envisioned.

"The parking lot in front of the performance arts center is not what should be done downtown," he said. "It breaks up the connectivity of the downtown."

Parking lots, he believes, should be situated behind buildings or off the main drag.

Temecula officials apparently have listened, and are planning a large parking structure as part of their future city hall complex just east of Front Street. That project is slated at $44 million.

The promise of a bustling downtown appears higher in Temecula than with its neighbor to the north, however. In Old Town Temecula, new structures mixing classic Western architecture with newer themes are planned or being built along Front Street and adjacent roads.

It may never be as populated as San Diego's Gaslamp Quarter, but each day, the district is increasingly appealing to outsiders. There are more diverse restaurant options, new cafes, and desirable apartment and condominium options -- often situated within the same building.

Challenges in Murrieta

That isn't the case in Murrieta, though Thornhill says it could be.

"It has a historic grid pattern, which is a great opportunity ... for downtown development," he said. "If we want a downtown, we'll have to accept more traffic there, some more intensity, maybe look to height issues."

But longtime Murrieta residents have resisted much development -- especially buildings with more than two stories -- in their downtown district along and around Washington Avenue.

Their concerns have been noted by Murrieta leaders, who hope to find a balance between the "country village" preferred by area residents and a booming business district that generates sales tax revenue for the city.

"It's probably not in the cards for us," Gibbs said of Old Town Temecula's growth spurt. "Each (city) has its own character, and each developed in its own way."

But critics of the status quo say without that type of development, Washington would remain a sleepy drag -- or worse, a blighted district -- depriving Murrieta of a true downtown.

Much of Washington between Ivy and Kalmia streets is comprised of old homes, some offices and small strip malls with parking facing the street.

Many downtown residents are dismayed by the boxy Washington Office Center, a two-story brick building that opened two years ago on Washington just south of Kalmia. But Thornhill believes area residents would be less resistant to structures with multiple stories -- including his preferred apartments or condos over stores and offices -- if architects proposed varying terracing for the different levels of those buildings, which is called "massing."

"I don't know if they can revitalize the area with two- or three-level buildings," Thornhill said.

Creating a village

Four-story buildings with varying "massing" and a mixture of architecture are popping up throughout Old Town Temecula, many of which resemble walk-ups found in Boston and Manhattan. Some feature balconies or awnings, others include colonnades or a combination of brick and panel siding, and most have several entry points and different setbacks among the stories.

Those differing architectural elements within the same structures ensure a lack of uniformity building to building -- a criticized trend of most recent housing tracts in Southern California.

"We don't want homogeny," Thornhill said. "In Italy, maybe it looks cool. But in America ... especially in newer communities, you want to show (they) developed in different periods."

Even with four levels, the new Old Town Temecula structures appear less imposing than the Washington Office Center, or the "big red building" as some angry residents call it.

"They still have a human scale," Thornhill said of the new Temecula buildings.

Despite the promise of Old Town Temecula, there are troubling signs there.

The freeway to the west, Thornhill says, remains a mental barrier for property owners such that restaurants to the east of I-15 are perceived to have a leg up on those downtown. Also, a store across from popular Mexican restaurant Rosa's Cantina on Front Street recently closed down.

"They're still living for the weekend," Thornhill said of Old Town Temecula businesses, as he toured Front Street recently. "You need to get people living here."

-- Contact staff writer Brian Eckhouse at (951) 676-4315, Ext. 2626, or beckhouse@californian.com.