Mixed-use development slowed by housing market
Old Town's five-year beautification plan near completion
By Daniel Wolowicz camarillo@theacorn.com

ON HOLD- The developer of the proposed mixed-use building along Ventura Boulevard at the corner of Oak Street in Old Town said he will wait to move forward with the new building.

A soft housing market forced Taft Corporation, a real estate development firm, to reconsider its plan to build a mixed-use building on the corner of Oak Street and Ventura Boulevard in Old Town.

Although the city approved the development in 2005, Kamyar Lashgari, president of the Malibu-based real estate firm, confirmed earlier this week that a downturn in Southern California's housing prices means the former Swedish Performance Auto Repair property will remain vacant a while longer- perhaps for another two years.

The property along the historic boulevard would have featured 5,600 square feet of retail space at street level with 10 townhouses, each about 1,400 square feet, built above the line of shops. To make the development profitable, Lashgari said, the two-bedroom townhouses would have to sell for $575,000 to $650,000.

"We have had interest in the retail space, but without the housing portion of it, we'd be overburdened with the housing expense," said Lashgari, who bought the land two years ago for an undisclosed amount.

The building would also have included the city's first underground parking garage, with two parking spaces for each of the 10 homeowners.

Lori Mills, a realtor with Prudential of California in Camarillo, said the housing market, especially in Camarillo, is still doing well. She said the media has overhyped the impact subprime loan foreclosures have had on the local market.

"Camarillo has not been hit that hard by (foreclosures)," Mills said. "We've seen some, but it's not the majority of the marketplace."

She said a lot of buyers are waiting to hear that the housing market has bottomed out and more investors are beginning to show interest again in real estate- a trend, Mills said, she hasn't seen in years.

Mills said it's likely if Lashgari waits long enough, the townhouses- particularly because they are in Old Town- will fetch his asking price.

"In that area right now, I honestly think $500,000 isn't out of the question, but $600,000 is," Mills said. "But two years from now, I don't think it will be."

Although Lashgari may eliminate the housing altogether and build a onestory commercial and retail building, he understands the city's vision for the Old Town area is to build a pedestrian-friendly shopping destination with an updated look.

"Our intent is to come up with a project that complies with the city's vision of that corridor," Lashgari said.

Bob Burrow, director of community development, said the mixeduse model of condominiums above shops is the type of development a growing number of Ventura County cities will most likely use in the future, especially in more developed downtown areas.

"One of the basic tenets of smart growth is where you utilize things most efficiently," Burrow said.

Mixed-use design will be the cornerstone of the city's two major redevelopment projects- the 55-acre Camarillo Commons and the 170-acre Springville housing community.

Burrow said the city would rather have Lashgari wait to build a development that complements the Old Town redevelopment plan than rush into construction with one that doesn't take advantage of the opportunity for a mixed-use building.

The city, Burrow said, expects to finish the third and final phase of the Ventura Boulevard redevelopment project by late September.

Started last summer, the third phase will finish out the fiveyear plan to give the thoroughfare a fresh look with lighting, landscaping and street upgrades along the shop-lined boulevard between Arneill and Lewis roads.

The plan, originally budgeted at $4.6 million, will have a final price tag of more than $5.5 million when complete.