Esplanade Merchants Fear Drift After Impending Loss of Anchors

OXNARD —  Ana Viveros looked out at the crowds shopping at the Esplanade and allowed that business at her Afterthoughts’ store--and at the nearly 3-decades-old Oxnard mall--is good.

But Viveros fears that rosy outlook will change in the next few months.

“It’s going to be a wait-and-see situation,” Viveros said.

The owners of Afterthoughts, an accessories store that’s been in the Esplanade for years, are waiting until the holiday season--after Sears, Roebuck & Co. and Robinsons-May have moved to Ventura’s remodeled Buenaventura Mall, which will be renamed Pacific View Mall--before they renew their lease, Viveros said.

“Stores here have no idea what they are going to do if those [anchor spaces] are left open,” she said. “Everyone is stuck wondering what’s going to happen.”

The two department stores are scheduled to open in the Ventura mall in November as part of a more than $50-million project that includes a new parking structure, the addition of JCPenney, an expanded transit center and a second level of stores. Construction began in 1997.

And when the revamped mall is completed, “I know we are going down,” Viveros said.

Viveros isn’t the only one worried about the Oxnard mall’s future.

Shoppers go to the Esplanade for the two department stores, said Cynthia Mabry, manager at General Nutrition Center.

“Many people who get their car worked on at Sears wander down here, or if there is a sale at Robinsons-May they wander down and we get a lot of their customers,” said Mabry, who has been manager for about a year.

Mabry said the store, which has been in the Esplanade for about 20 years, is the oldest General Nutrition Center in the county. And although it is scheduled to stay open, there are plans for a store in the Ventura mall.

Mabry lamented that her business already is decreasing.

“We can’t meet sales goals from last year,” she said.

Sandy Dellibovi, the Esplanade’s general manager, said that’s not true of the mall as a whole. The Esplanade is doing well, with a 90% occupancy rate, she said.

“We anticipate going into the holidays with close to 100% occupancy,” Dellibovi said. “It will remain a retail environment. The in-line [smaller] stores will remain at this point in time. We are very excited and think there is a great deal of potential with this location. I think there are numerous opportunities, and we are exploring all of those.”

But no decisions for the future of the mall have been made, said Kurt Schiedt, a San Francisco resident who is part owner of the Esplanade.

“We’re talking to several large retailers on our own and with potential joint venture projects,” he said. “We don’t know if we will tear it down or use what we have.”

The mall attracts a lot of potential buyers because of its location, said Richard Maggio, Oxnard’s community development director.

“There is a lot of interest in the property because it’s still an excellent location,” he said. “It’s off the freeway and has freeway visibility, and it has good access through the Vineyard Avenue interchange.”

If the owners don’t find tenants or the right buyers, the mall and city would suffer, added Maggio. The two department stores, he added, are responsible for about one-third of the mall’s sales tax revenues.

“If you don’t have two anchors . . . then the stores in the middle will suffer,” he said.

While many agree with Dellibovi that business at the Esplanade has increased during the Ventura mall’s renovation, they fear trade will decline when the Buenaventura reopens as the Pacific View in mid-November.

Francisco Martinez, manager of Fred Meyer Jewelers at the Esplanade for 12 years, said he will try to stay open.

“We’re just going to try the best we can to keep our clientele,” Martinez said. “We’re going to let them know we’re here to serve them.”

Martinez said the Esplanade has begun to show signs that it’s struggling.

“I think it’s already suffering,” he said. “They [the Ventura mall] will be modern, with more anchor stores. I’m sure it will take business traffic away from here.”

Patty Romero, 27, has shopped at the Esplanade since she moved to Oxnard five years ago because of its convenience--and more.

“I usually shop at Sears and the other stores because I think they have more variety here and the people are more friendly,” she said. “This is a stop for me. Then, I’ll have to drive all the way over there.”

Richard Trevino, 22, who shops at the Esplanade and at The Oaks in Thousand Oaks, said he will shop at the Ventura mall when it’s fully open.

“It’s going to be way better and nicer over there,” Trevino said. “I’m hoping they upgrade their merchandise.”

Buenaventura Mall employees say they expect their business to increase when construction is completed.

Victoria Thomas, a clerk at Pretzel Time, said people who shop elsewhere are going to head to Pacific View Mall.

“Why would people want to travel to Thousand Oaks like they do now when they can come here?” she said. “I think it will definitely be a busy mall.”

Beth Whitcomb, a clerk at See’s Candies in the Ventura mall, said some people are going to the Esplanade during the construction period, but business will start booming when the renovation is complete.

“We are anticipating a lot of growth and a lot of business,” she said. “It will probably take a few months for people to figure that out. The Esplanade was already suffering, and this is going to be the final blow.”

Milinda Martin, director of special events and public relations for Robinsons-May, said the Ventura store, scheduled to open Nov. 19, will lure both Oxnard and Ventura customers.

“What we have planned for the store in Ventura--in terms of merchandise and look of the store--is going to be so wonderful that not only will we retain the Oxnard customer, but we will also have new customers who do not shop at the Esplanade,” Martin said.

Sears officials were unavailable for comment.

The Esplanade-versus-Pacific View case is an example of the economic survival of the fittest, said Mark Schniepp, director of economic forecasting at UC Santa Barbara.

“It’s a reshuffling of modern retail,” Schniepp said. “In the grand scheme of things it might be the best thing for the Esplanade. There needs to be something done. The Esplanade has been a dying center for a number of years.”

Modern malls are where consumers want to shop, Schniepp said.

“It’s definitely a better retail situation for consumers, and ultimately that’s what it’s all about,” he said. “The larger purpose is served.”

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