Panorama City : Residents Debate Wal-Mart Proposal

To Wal-Mart executives, the 14-acre site on Roscoe Boulevard now occupied by the Van Nuys Drive-In is an ideal location for the retail giant’s first store in the city of Los Angeles.

But to many who live in the heavily residential area surrounding the theater, a Wal-Mart would mean more cars on a stretch of boulevard near the San Diego Freeway, already jammed with traffic during rush hours.

About 150 residents attended a community meeting Monday at Mission Community Hospital to talk with Wal-Mart executives about the project.

“Please rethink this and look for another location,” Don Schultz, president of the Van Nuys Homeowners Assn., said. “You’ll never be able to mitigate the traffic impact. It’s way too much project for this neighborhood.”

Others who were more amenable to a Wal-Mart said the store would provide an economic lift to the neighborhood, bring jobs and support youth programs and area schools. Also, proponents added, building a 135,000-square-foot department store would be better than alternative development projects, such as building apartments on the site, which is now zoned residential.

Wal-Mart representatives at the meeting said the drive-in site was selected because of its size and because of the population density of Panorama City.

If the store is built, it would be the chain’s first venture in an urban area. But a decision from city planners on the project is at least 18 months away, said Mark Ostoich, a legal representative for Wal-Mart.

In a hand count at the end of the meeting--after many people had left--about 29 residents said they were opposed to a Wal-Mart, 15 indicated they thought it was a great idea and 41 said they liked the idea, but wanted Wal-Mart to promise to solve traffic problems and other issues, such as noise and security.

More community meetings will be held in coming months, Wal-Mart representatives said.