LATHROP – In an action reminiscent of a television suspense drama’s last hour surprise witness suddenly appearing to throw a monkey wrench into an evident victorious conclusion, attorneys representing Lathrop Business Park surprised Lathrop Council members by hand-delivering copies of a 74-page objection to a project being proposed for construction on 18 acres originally part of the business park.
The lengthy written objection from Herum/Crabtree Attorneys came on the heels of Mayor Kristy Sayles suggesting a postponement of the council’s discussion and vote on the proposal after reading a letter from Steven A. Herum, the business park’s legal counsel, which stated that he was unable to be at the meeting because he was on a business trip to Washington, D.C.
The postponement, which the council voted 4-0 with Council member Sonny Dhaliwal absent, means a two-week delay for the project since the item was tabled to the next regular meeting on Nov. 3.
A frustrated Kevin A. Coleman of LBA Realty, the developer of the proposed 383,000-square-foot industrial building on a prime highway commercial property that has stood vacant for the last 20 years, described the Herum/Crabtree action as an 11th-hour effort to say, “let’s stall this once again.”
He also criticized the timing of the objection saying the LBA Realty project has been made public for several months during which time the project opponents have not filed any objections either to them or to the city.
The Lathrop Business Park owners are against changing the land-use designation and zoning of the 18.7-acre parcel from freeway commercial to general industrial which would pave the way for LBA Realty to build its tilt-up speculation building which, according to initial reports, could be the future home to a John Deere distribution center. The zoning change would require an amendment to the municipal code.
The project has been unanimously approved by the Planning Commission 4.0 during a public hearing, with Commissioner Jose Perez abstaining due to conflict of interest, sending it to the council with a recommendation for approval. Perez’s conflict arises from the fact he is the Lathrop Busines Park’s manager.
Council member Robert Oliver said he will need the two-week public hearing postponement period to review the objection papers from the Herum/Crabtree Attorneys.
He came to the meeting intending to vote against the LBA Realty project but he said he changed his mind after a conversation that evening with city Community Development Director Charlie Mullen about the proposal.
He also considered the huge tilt-up spec building that LBA Realty wants to locate at the site as a project in “the wrong place.” However, he lauded it as a “monumental effort” with the proponents doggedly going through the “68 conditions” required of the project.
“It’s good but not great,” he said, adding he “would rather see stores and commercials out there.”
But, he admitted, LBA Realty’s proposition “may be the only thing we may do with that place,” plus it will at least bring revenue to city coffers.
Sayles also recalled the “exciting” times when the outlet mall opened but that it was short-lived. After several years of looking like a ghost town with all the stores shuttered, the once thriving mall re-opened in 1997 as the Lathrop Business Park. The 18.7-acre next to it was supposed to have been the second phase of that commercial project.
“The land sat vacant for 20 years,” the mayor said.
While her approval of the proposed project was simply inferred, Sayles said she was reserving her comments to the end of the public hearing. Council member Martha Salcedo agreed saying she needs “to see both sides” before making a decision on the matter. Council member Christopher Mateo echoed both sentiments.
The mayor though encouraged the two parties – Hiram/Crabtree Attorneys with Lathrop Business Park LLC and LBA Realty to meet and see if their differences can be hashed out.
“I encourage both parties to meet together to see if there’s a compromise that could be worked out” prior to the Nov. 3 continuation of the public hearing, said the mayor who called the situation “frustrating.”
“Hopefully, we can end the arguments before then,” she told the representatives of both groups.
It is not known who are exactly the owners of the Lathrop Business Park but that one source said it is owned by 11 different partners from various parts of the country.
LBA Realty purchased the 18.7-acre parcel behind McDonald’s restaurant on Louise Avenue from Richland Planned Communities which purchased the remainder of undeveloped lands at the 528-acre Crossroads Commerce Center on South Harland Road. The land’s location though is considered as a “tough exit and entrance” for commercial developments because of its unique location. On the east side is Pilkington Glass, formerly the Libbey-Owens-Ford Glass Company. To the south is E.R. Carpenter, while to the southwest is the Lathrop Business Park. The project would be facing Harlan Road which would be the ingress and egress points with an additional proposed exit that would tie the project in to Murphy Road in the Crossroads Commerce Center. That addition would take the vehicles to D’Arcy Parkway and on to West Yosemite Avenue thereby lessening the vehicular truck traffic on Louise Avenue.
A fiscal-impact analysis prepared for the LBA Realty project location which was mandated by the city showed that a 383,000-square-foot industrial warehouse and distribution building such as the one being proposed would generate only $61,000 to the city’s general fund every year. Office buildings with 244,000 square feet would fare even worse financially for the city with a whopping $210,000 annual negative impact to the city’s general fund. In contrast, retail commercial buildings at this proposed project site would bring in approximately $552,000 to the general fund each year.
The lengthy written objection from Herum/Crabtree Attorneys came on the heels of Mayor Kristy Sayles suggesting a postponement of the council’s discussion and vote on the proposal after reading a letter from Steven A. Herum, the business park’s legal counsel, which stated that he was unable to be at the meeting because he was on a business trip to Washington, D.C.
The postponement, which the council voted 4-0 with Council member Sonny Dhaliwal absent, means a two-week delay for the project since the item was tabled to the next regular meeting on Nov. 3.
A frustrated Kevin A. Coleman of LBA Realty, the developer of the proposed 383,000-square-foot industrial building on a prime highway commercial property that has stood vacant for the last 20 years, described the Herum/Crabtree action as an 11th-hour effort to say, “let’s stall this once again.”
He also criticized the timing of the objection saying the LBA Realty project has been made public for several months during which time the project opponents have not filed any objections either to them or to the city.
The Lathrop Business Park owners are against changing the land-use designation and zoning of the 18.7-acre parcel from freeway commercial to general industrial which would pave the way for LBA Realty to build its tilt-up speculation building which, according to initial reports, could be the future home to a John Deere distribution center. The zoning change would require an amendment to the municipal code.
The project has been unanimously approved by the Planning Commission 4.0 during a public hearing, with Commissioner Jose Perez abstaining due to conflict of interest, sending it to the council with a recommendation for approval. Perez’s conflict arises from the fact he is the Lathrop Busines Park’s manager.
Council member Robert Oliver said he will need the two-week public hearing postponement period to review the objection papers from the Herum/Crabtree Attorneys.
He came to the meeting intending to vote against the LBA Realty project but he said he changed his mind after a conversation that evening with city Community Development Director Charlie Mullen about the proposal.
Oliver would rather see stores, commercial
“I’m very reticent to changes in general plans. I’ve resisted the idea of industrial zones in the middle of commercial zones,” Oliver explained.He also considered the huge tilt-up spec building that LBA Realty wants to locate at the site as a project in “the wrong place.” However, he lauded it as a “monumental effort” with the proponents doggedly going through the “68 conditions” required of the project.
“It’s good but not great,” he said, adding he “would rather see stores and commercials out there.”
But, he admitted, LBA Realty’s proposition “may be the only thing we may do with that place,” plus it will at least bring revenue to city coffers.
Sayles also recalled the “exciting” times when the outlet mall opened but that it was short-lived. After several years of looking like a ghost town with all the stores shuttered, the once thriving mall re-opened in 1997 as the Lathrop Business Park. The 18.7-acre next to it was supposed to have been the second phase of that commercial project.
“The land sat vacant for 20 years,” the mayor said.
While her approval of the proposed project was simply inferred, Sayles said she was reserving her comments to the end of the public hearing. Council member Martha Salcedo agreed saying she needs “to see both sides” before making a decision on the matter. Council member Christopher Mateo echoed both sentiments.
The mayor though encouraged the two parties – Hiram/Crabtree Attorneys with Lathrop Business Park LLC and LBA Realty to meet and see if their differences can be hashed out.
“I encourage both parties to meet together to see if there’s a compromise that could be worked out” prior to the Nov. 3 continuation of the public hearing, said the mayor who called the situation “frustrating.”
“Hopefully, we can end the arguments before then,” she told the representatives of both groups.
It is not known who are exactly the owners of the Lathrop Business Park but that one source said it is owned by 11 different partners from various parts of the country.
LBA Realty purchased the 18.7-acre parcel behind McDonald’s restaurant on Louise Avenue from Richland Planned Communities which purchased the remainder of undeveloped lands at the 528-acre Crossroads Commerce Center on South Harland Road. The land’s location though is considered as a “tough exit and entrance” for commercial developments because of its unique location. On the east side is Pilkington Glass, formerly the Libbey-Owens-Ford Glass Company. To the south is E.R. Carpenter, while to the southwest is the Lathrop Business Park. The project would be facing Harlan Road which would be the ingress and egress points with an additional proposed exit that would tie the project in to Murphy Road in the Crossroads Commerce Center. That addition would take the vehicles to D’Arcy Parkway and on to West Yosemite Avenue thereby lessening the vehicular truck traffic on Louise Avenue.
Outlet mall built in 1995, then failed
Lathrop Outlet Mall was built in 1995. Two years after becoming a ghost town, the former mall re-opened as the present business park which is now home to such learning institutions as ITT Tech, University of Phoenix, a chiropractic clinic and a host of other professional offices.A fiscal-impact analysis prepared for the LBA Realty project location which was mandated by the city showed that a 383,000-square-foot industrial warehouse and distribution building such as the one being proposed would generate only $61,000 to the city’s general fund every year. Office buildings with 244,000 square feet would fare even worse financially for the city with a whopping $210,000 annual negative impact to the city’s general fund. In contrast, retail commercial buildings at this proposed project site would bring in approximately $552,000 to the general fund each year.
