Whole Foods could be in near the Civic Center by next summer.
By Jonathan Friedman / Assistant Editor
New palm trees are up in the parking lot of Point Dume Village. Vegetation is also being planted throughout the mall. A water fountain has been built in the front, replacing an old, worn-down kiosk. The redesign project of what was formerly Point Dume Plaza, which also includes newly paved walkways with granite flagstone, is expected to be completed in the fall, coinciding with the grand opening of Pavilions grocery story, replacing Cooke’s Family Market.
Mall owner Zan Marquis, who has been criticized and praised for the changes he is making to Point Dume Village, said this week that the Pavilions, the upscale version of Vons, will be an approximately 25,000-square-foot structure. It will include the former Cooke’s building as well as the adjacent 2,000-square foot pharmacy and the 3,000-square-foot former home to Malibu Gymnastics. The pharmacy has moved to another spot in the mall, replacing a pet store.
“It [Pavilions] will have a lot of features… a full-service Starbucks and an elaborate wine counter,” Marquis said.
Point Dume Village was in the news late last year when the Dume Room, a favorite bar for some locals, was forced to close after 34 years. There were some protests and pleas for the bar to be saved, but Marquis was not interested, saying it did not fit with his vision of what Point Dume Village should be.
“Everyone who knows the Dume Room knows what I mean,” Marquis told The Malibu Times in November. “We get complaints almost on a daily basis from other tenants and customers. They [the Dume Room] are not as popular as they claim to be.”
Marquis said this week that he was in discussion with possible replacements for the Dume Room space. As for other businesses, Zuma Beach Video & Music relocated to the second floor, just above Point Dume Chinese restaurant. Marquis said there would also be other tenants relocating to other sections of the mall, with other new businesses coming to Point Dume Village as well.
He added, “Nobody downstairs is leaving; they all have leases anyway.”
Additionally, Marquis said some portable kiosks will be put in the front of the mall next to the fountain, but he said he did not know yet what businesses would operate those kiosks.
Whole Foods on the way
Meanwhile, down on the other side of the city, progress is being made by developer Gordon Ekstrand, who plans to build a 35,000-square-foot Whole Foods on the Papa Jack’s State Park property, located on the northwest corner of Civic Center Way and Cross Creek Road. Ekstrand said this week “for all intents and purposes, a 20-year lease has been signed; just some fine tuning needs to be done.” He said that process should be completed this month.
Ekstrand plans to build up to an additional 18,000 square feet (he said in February that it could be as much as 28,000 square feet, but has since reduced the figure) on the property. Various shops and eateries would be established there.
The developer is currently having various environmental analyses being conducted as he prepares to formally submit an application to the city. He said the application should be ready in six to eight weeks. An environmental impact report will be conducted for the project.
“With some amount of luck, the store has a chance of opening in the summer of 2009. We’ll be getting more and more expeditious [as the development process continues]. I know some people might think we’ve been moving slowly.”