Mega-retailer to depart Triangle Square

Andrew Edwards

Only months after announcing a deal to stay at Triangle Square, the

Virgin Entertainment Group late Monday announced plans for Virgin

Megastore to leave the shopping center this fall.

The impending departure marks this year’s second major blow to the

mall.

Virgin Megastore has been Triangle Square’s place to buy music and

videos since the mall opened in 1992.

In a news release, Virgin announced plans to close its Triangle

Square store on Sept. 22. The statement did not cite a specific

reason for the planned departure.

If plans to leave go through, the retailer would follow Niketown

as the latest major retailer to drop out of the mall.

Niketown closed shop at Triangle Square in January, and a

replacement tenant has yet to be found.

Representatives of Charles Dunn Real Estate Services, the mall’s

property management firm, said in a prepared statement in response to

Virgin’s announcement that it is working with a current Triangle

Square tenant interested in expanding into the 13,912-square-foot

area to be vacated by Virgin Megastore.

In March, an agreement between Triangle Square and Virgin was

announced in which the store would have extended its lease by one

year.

A Triangle Square spokeswoman said Monday evening that Virgin

exercised an escape clause.

The loss of another major retailer at the long-troubled shopping

center is bad news but does not mean Triangle Square is doomed, Costa

Mesa Mayor Allan Mansoor said.

“It’s a disappointment, but I still believe Triangle Square has

got a lot of value,” Mansoor said.

Mansoor believes the mall, owned by a company called Triangle

Square Investments LLC, could be successful if mall management is

able to attract businesses that fit in with a comprehensive plan.

He does not believe success can be reached by signing any new

leases on a store-by-store basis.

Similarly, Councilwoman Katrina Foley said Triangle Square

managers need to look for new tenants -- she suggested a day spa --

that can mesh with what she sees as Triangle Square’s evolution from

a retail shopping center to a destination-driven mall.

“It’s got to be something that’s going to fit in with the rest of

the store,” Foley said.

Virgin’s announcement comes only days after Charles Dunn Real

Estate Services announced it had inked a deal with a new leasing team

from Los Angeles-based Colliers Seeley International to fill Triangle

Square’s empty spaces.

The statement released on behalf of Charles Dunn Real Estate

indicated Colliers Seeley plans to look for fashion stores, a day spa

or health club, sit-down restaurants and entertainment venues for

Triangle Square.

QUESTION

What kind of businesses should Triangle Square try to attract?

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* ANDREW EDWARDS covers business and the environment. He can be

reached at (714) 966-4624 or by e-mail at andrew.edwards@latimes.com.