Neighborhood Group Backs Retail Project

A community planning advisory committee unanimously favored a proposed retail development for a Canoga Park intersection already populated with shopping centers.

At a Wednesday night meeting of the Canoga Park/Winnetka Neighborhood Planning Advisory Council, committee members praised the development proposed for the northeast corner of Canoga Avenue and Victory Boulevard.

But they also asked that Jerry Snyder--whose company J.H. Snyder Co. is buying the property from Rockwell International Co.--consider other tenants, ones that would not repeat the services already offered on the retail-heavy intersection.

Snyder said he would remain open to other ideas, but added that he is confident the local economy could support a new retail project.

“We know the interest is there, the demand is there and the tenants are there,” he said. “There is a certain synergy to have these things in one place. They all want to be where the people are.”

Snyder is currently in escrow to buy a 10.8-acre parcel on which he plans to build 177,000 square feet of retail space, with 688 parking spaces.

Although he said he has not made deals with tenants, Snyder hinted that he is talking with Toys R Us about relocating its store from a nearby site on Topanga Canyon Boulevard.

The project also would include a linen shop and an office supply store, possibly a Barnes & Nobel bookstore, a restaurant and several smaller shops.

Only one of the few people at the meeting had reservations about possible industrial contaminants that may have been leaked into the ground with the property’s previous use.

Snyder said that as part of his agreement with Rockwell, the aerospace company is required to do soil testing and clean the site before releasing it to him.

Since the project is ruled by the regulations of the Warner Center Specific Plan and would affect Woodland Hills, Snyder will make his presentation to the Woodland Hills/West Hills Neighborhood Planning Advisory Council on Feb. 12.

Both advisory groups review the project and make recommendations on it to City Councilwoman Laura Chick, who represents the area and who, in turn, will make a recommendation to the city’s planning department.