Lowe’s wants Westlake store

By Sylvie Belmond
belmond@theacorn.com

Plans have been submitted to the city of Westlake Village for a new 137,000-square-foot Lowe’s home improvement retail store on Russell Ranch Road.

Lowe’s filed the application in November 2004, according to Westlake Village Planning Director Robert Theobald. Earlier this month, the Westlake Village City Council ordered a consultant to study the environmental impacts of the new big-box retailer..

Lowe’s hasn’t made an official announcement about the Westlake move because they have yet to purchase the property site, said Jennifer Smith, a spokesperson for the North Carolina-based company.

"We are evaluating additional opportunities in California as part of nationwide expansion plans," Smith said.

Lowe’s probably will begin reviewing plans for the store in March or April, Theobald said. The concept review is an unofficial procedure that gives the developer and the city an opportunity to discuss the project without formal commitment. It’s usually the first step for large-scale developments in Westlake Village.

Lowe’s is hoping to receive its entitlement to build by the end of summer, Theobald said.

If the entitlement process goes through, Lowe’s would turn to the city council for a public hearing. If the council gives its final okay, the new Lowe’s could be open in about two years.

The store would be part of a new 230,000-square-foot commercial center located near two recently-approved officie buildings and a Marriott Hotel at the corner of Lindero Canyon Road and Russell Ranch Road.

The Lowe’s site currently is zoned for offices, but according to Robert Slavin, a Westlake Village council member, the city would consider another commercial use for the property to alleviate traffic concerns.

"Another office complex there would generate thousands of people coming and leaving at the same time," Slavin said.

Currently, the Lowe’s site is entitled for 400,000 square feet of offices, but the zoning was approved in the 1980s when traffic wasn’t as much of an issue, Slavin said.

"It’s too premature for anybody to take a position," he said.

Lowe’s owns 61 stores in California; the nearest one is in West Hills in the San Fernando Valley. The company opened 144 stores in 2004 and continues to expand at a rapid pace.

Lowe’s employs approximately 160,000 workers and owns 1,050 stores in 45 states.

"What sets us apart from other similar businesses is that we offer quality customer service and clean stores," said Smith.

The stores primarily serve individual consumers.

"We enter a community as a committed neighbor," said Smith.

The company tries to address all issues before it arrives and aims to blend in with community, she said.

Smith said Lowe’s earned the Fortune 500 most admired specialty retailer commendation for two consecutive years because of its long-term investment value, employee talent and quality product and services.

Competition heats up

Lowe’s is not the only home improvement store with plans to establish a presence in the area. Home Depot wants to open a second store in addition to the one that it already has in Newbury Park Home Depot took over the lease of the former Kmart property on Hampshire Road in Thousand Oaks and may tear down the existing building to construct a new store. According to reports, Home Depot would like to open the Hampshire store by early 2007.

Thousand Oaks City Council Member Ed Masry reportedly will fight the new Home Depot.

Rumors of a Home Depot Expo —a higher-end home design store—coming to Thousand Oaks appear to be unfounded, Gary Wartik, Thousand Oaks economic development director, said.

"The city of Thousand Oaks only had one preliminary meeting about this," Wartik said.

As for the viability of several home improvement stores operating so close to each other, that’s an issue that both Home Depot and Lowe’s will have to address, Warkik said.

Two existing Do-It Centers in Thousand Oaks and Agoura Hills will continue to face challenges, but the competition is good, Wartik said.

San Fernando Valley publicist Al Abrams was hired to handle public relations for the Westlake Village Lowe’s. But Abrams deferred comments about the project to Smith.

Ironically, Abrams opposed the move to put a big-box home improvement store in Agoura Hills in 2002.

Abrams sided with Do-It Center and led a successful petition drive to put Measure H, the anti-Home Depot initiative, on the Agoura Hills ballot. The measure passed and limits big-box retail stores in Agoura Hills to 60,000 square feet.