The Santa Clarita City Council is expected to discuss modifications to significantly reduce the scope of a previously approved expansion of the Westfield Valencia Town Center Mall, including the removal of a new gym and cinema from the plans.

The project, known as the “Patios Connection Project”, had received approval in its initial form in January 2020 from the Santa Clarita City Council and intended to transform the eastern portion of the mall.

“We really believed in the project that got approved earlier this year, but we feel this project will be successful as well and we want to elevate the experience at the shopping center,” said Kim Brewer, senior vice president of development for Westfield. “We’re very supportive of the new plan we’re putting forward, but we wanted to make sure we really did bring a project forward rather than bringing nothing forward at this time.”

The initial plans included the demolition of the existing Sears building, the construction of a Costco with a 30-pump gas station and rooftop parking, as well as the construction of a new gymnasium and movie theatres. 

Additionally, the project sought to expand The Canyon Santa Clarita music venue by 2,100 square feet and added 7,500 square feet of new retail space.

In total, the expansion project as initially conceived would have added 101,000 square feet of new commercial space, with the newly proposed modifications, that total is reduced to 35,000 square feet.

“I think when we saw the initial proposal we were excited with all the changes that were involved,” said Santa Clarita Mayor Cameron Smyth, “but businesses and business footprints have changed very quickly in these last several months and I think all industries have had to pivot and adjust to the current and likely the future markets.”

The Santa Clarita City Council is expected to receive a report from city staff outlining the modifications to reduce the scope of the project and to approve city officials to proceed with the modifications at their regular Tuesday meeting.

“As a result of the COVID-19 crisis, the current economic environment, and the related need to address its associated long-term effects, the applicant is proposing the reduction of the approved gym and cinema uses,” the report reads.

In addition to the removal of the gym and movie theatres from the project, the project would be modified to add less new retail space.

Since the legal requirements for additional parking is reduced proportionally to the overall reduction in new square footage associated with the project, the modified project removes plans for the 275 spaces of rooftop parking above Costco.

The modified project does retain the original plans for the Costco, gas station and expansion of The Canyon Santa Clarita, however the overall reduction in scope has meant the project could be completed sooner than it was initially slated.

“Hopefully we can potentially deliver it sooner than expected based on the changes in the project,” Brewer said. “So we’re hoping to have a project that could open in 2023.”

While completion is still several years away, the project is not expected to receive any further alterations before then, according to Brewer.

With the removal of the luxury cinema from the plans, there is some potential in place for a renovation of the mall’s existing facilities at Edwards Cinema.

“The Edwards team does have a building permit that is ready to be issued to do a renovation of that existing theatre which they are extremely excited to execute,” Brewer said. “I think they just need to work through what the timing of execution is based on the impacts with COVID, since they’re still not open currently, today.”

Westfield has also had to make tough choices amid the economic slowdown, as some various other projects at locations outside of Santa Clarita have been canceled.

“We really think the current project, even though downsized from what we were hoping to deliver, still really creates an elevated experience at the center, Brewer said. “It’s a significant investment and knowing the challenges of COVID it’s one of the few projects continuing to advance in this really tough economic time which is a really great commitment by the company.”

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has had a wide-reaching impact on many industries across the economy, which has forced many businesses to re-evaluate and recalibrate to account for current events, including some other developments in Santa Clarita.

“I think projects like the Sand Canyon Plaza that we approved several years ago and some others are reworking, or looking at reworking their model to make it as fit under today’s circumstances,” Smyth said. “Certainly when you see the impact on the film industry and theatres, it made sense at least in this case for Westfield to make some of those modifications.”

The full agenda for Tuesday’s regular meeting of the Santa Clarita City Council is available here.

KHTS FM 98.1 and AM 1220 is Santa Clarita’s only local radio station. KHTS mixes in a combination of news, traffic, sports, and features along with your favorite adult contemporary hits. Santa Clarita news and features are delivered throughout the day over our airwaves, on our website and through a variety of social media platforms. Our KHTS national award-winning daily news briefs are now read daily by 34,000+ residents. A vibrant member of the Santa Clarita community, the KHTS broadcast signal reaches all of the Santa Clarita Valley and parts of the high desert communities located in the Antelope Valley. The station streams its talk shows over the web, reaching a potentially worldwide audience. Follow @KHTSRadio on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.