CALABASAS : 2 Movie Complexes Feasible, Study Says

Calabasas could support two major movie complexes despite the inherent competition that two such establishments would present, according to a consultant’s study.

The city ordered the study to placate the developer of one of those projects, which was approved by the city in November, 1992.

The City Council is expected to vote tonight on whether to approve the latest project, an eight-plex theater complex. It would be part of a planned 1.5-million-square-foot office and retail project known as Calabasas Park Centre, at the corner of Calabasas Road and Parkway Calabasas.

In November, 1992, the council approved an eight-theater movie house near the corner of Las Virgenes and Agoura roads. The project, part of a 190,000-square-foot commercial center called the Calabasas Promenade, is about two miles west of the Park Centre project.

Construction has not begun on either project.

“The two proposed projects are not located in the same film zone,” said the study by Keyser Marston Associates Inc. presented to the City Council on Monday.

“A cinema developed at the Promenade would not create a significant impact on the potential for cinema development occurring at Park Centre.”

According to the study, the two cinemas would not be competing for patrons because they would draw customers from different parts of the city and surrounding area. Pamela Azar, developer of the project approved in 1992, could not be reached for comment on the matter Tuesday. But she has said in the past that her project would be doomed if the second project were approved.

The city would need another 40,000 residents to make a second cinema complex feasible, she has said.

Other cities are also considering allowing construction of cinema complexes. Thousand Oaks is considering a proposal for an 18-plex theater and plans have been announced for a 14-plex theater and a 20-plex theater in Woodland Hills.

Councilman Bob Hill said Tuesday the study won’t influence his vote.

“They are interesting bits of information, but I am not sure they are going to influence the vote for or against the project,” he said.

The real issue is whether the latest project conforms to zoning and land-use ordinances, he said.