The Los Angeles Times from Los Angeles, California • Page 342

LOS ANGELES TIMES SE THURSDAY, DECEMBER 27, 1990 J3 SOUTHEAST AREA'S TOP 10 SHOPPING CENTERS Renewal Zone May Be Key to Help Los Altos Rebuild Vaar opanad: 1985 Draw a three-mile ring around Los Altos Shopping Center in Long Beach and you would think it would be one of the leading shopping areas of southeast Los Angeles County. The household income is relatively high, much the same as that surrounding high-rolling malls in Lakewood and Cerritos. But the sprawling collection of shops that make up the Los Altos center looks more like it belongs in a struggling prairie town about to go bust. On a weeknight a couple of weeks before Christmas, the holiday rush was nowhere in evidence. There were plenty of parking spaces and enough elbow room for an elephant to stroll down the sidewalks.

First opened in 1956, Los Altos grew up along Bellflower Boulevard. It straddles Stearns Street, which shoppers have to cross to get from one part of the shopping center to the other. It is a rambling, untidy assemblage of small shops and chain stores such as Broadway, JC Penney, Target and Wool-worth more the kind of place someone would run to for a last- minute purchase than for an afternoon of shopping. "The Broadway is like a tomb," grumbled a Long Beach resident who said she tries to avoid the center. But Los Altos may yet have another life.

Hungry for more sales tax income and convinced that the market is there to support a healthier center, the city is considering establishing a redevelopment zone to help rebuild and expand the complex. "If the design was improved, it could do quite well," observed a marketing consultant. Using public money and powers of condemnation, the Redevelopment Agency could reassemble the center's land parcels, now held by a confusing array of owners. Several of those owners have expressed support for the idea and shopkeepers also seem interested. "The city is 20 years late in getting this together," commented Leonard Siegel, who has run a woman's clothing shop at Los Altos for the past 25 years.

If the complex is renovated, he added with a smile, it will give him an excuse to retire. Year opened; 1956 Retell square footage: 575,000 Anchor store: Broadway, JC Penney Number of rtorei: 70 1989 aalea tax paid to city: Estimated $874,500 of city' total aalea tax revenue: 3 Retail aquare footaga: 644,000 Anchor atoraa; JC Penney, May Mervyn's Number of rtorai: 171 1989 aalea tax paid to city: Estimated $1.1 million of clty'a total aalei tax revenue: 18.1 Moat memorable feature: Tri level food court. Sprawled on opposites sides of a busy intersection. Old-Fashioned Success Is Found in Montebello Most memorable feature: Year opened: Paddison Feels the Weight of the Years, Competition Retail square footage: 450,210 Anchor stores: Sears, Target Number of stores. 74 1989 sales tax paid to city: Estimated $568,000 of city's total aalea tax revenue: 3 Moat memorable feature: Eight- screen movie theater.

5-Year-Old Catch-22 Hurts Santa Fe Springs Stores 1985 most of its sales tax income from local wholesalers and distributors. Designed with skylights and a tile walkway linking the shops, the mall draws customers from nearby cities such as Whittier and Pico Rivera. Indeed, nearly half a million people live within a few miles of the mall, which features mid-range and lower-end stores such as Target, Sears, Kinney Shoes, Casual Corner and Athlete's Foot. There are some "coming soon" signs scattered around the mall, and general manager Dean Itow said a recent leasing push by the mall's owners, the Taubman Co. of Michigan, is paying off.

A new eight-screen movie theater also opened last summer, drawing more people. "It's looking up," remarked Royls, the clothing store manager. mirKKtBKtWBStiriritr mil3SiiiSlMyM" "Moving to Sherman Oaks," announces a sign that directs customers to other outlets in the Stone-wood Mall or Whitwood Mall in Whittier. "There are so many huge shop ping malls close by. Our residents go out of the city basically," observed Bonnie Baird, assistant di rector of the Norwalk Chamber of Commerce.

Having so many malls close to us is very difficult for our shopping centers." Corn-Fed For Polly's! ivicLnuaiaae. luscious sauce. IIM (Paddison Year opened: 1968 Retail square footage: 316,800 Anchor stores: Montgomery Ward, Thrifty Drug Number of stores: 32 1989 salea tax paid to city: Estimated $211,950 of city's total aalea tax revenue 3 Moat memorable feature: Dowdy '60s look. It is called Montebello Town Center and, indeed, the mall's developers have tried to create a Main Street, turn-of-the-century atmosphere, breaking up the vast interior promenades with clusters of street lamps, tall trees and park benches. Town Center, though, could not be any farther from the geographic center of Montebello and still be in town.

Like an outpost, the modern shopping mecca sits atop a hill at the northernmost edge of the city, beckoning commuters off the Pomona Freeway from a gully below. Built in 1985 on the site of an old Chevron oil field, Town Center is the most successful mall in the Southeast in terms of sales revenue per square foot $224 in 1989. Design and location account for much of Town Center's success, said Geoffrey Fults of Donahue-Schriber, one of the original development partners and the current manager and leasing agent for the mall. There is only an off-ramp between the mall and the Pomona Freeway, and Fults said, "one of the beauties of the project is that the next mall Stonewood in Downey is eight miles away." Situated as it is on Montebello Boulevard near San Gabriel Boulevard, the mall draws from a solid middle-income population in Southeast Los Angeles County, as well as from the San Gabriel Valley to the north and west. When JC Southeast Religious ASSEMBLIES OF GOD CENTRO AVANGELISTICO EBENEZER 4665 Clara Cudahy.

Ca. 90201 (213) 560-3915 BAPTIST tAKEWOOD FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH 5336 Arbor Long Beach, Ca 90808 (213) 420-1471 RIVERA FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH 9141 Burke SI. (corner of Serapis Burke) Pico Rivera, CA 90660. 949-1423 Spanish i English Sunday School Classes at 9:30 a.m. Adult and children worship services 11 6 p.m.

Wednesday night Bible Study at 7 p.m. REFORMED BAPTIST REFORMED BAPTIST CHURCH OF BELLFLOWER 16518 Adenmoor Bellflower, Ca. 90706 (213) 867-3323 CATHOLIC ST. MARIANNE CHURCH 7922 Passons Pico Rivera, Ca. 90660 (213) 949-8240 ST.

PANCRATIUS CHURCH 3519 SL Pancratius Lakewood, Ca. 90712 (213) 634-6111 ST. PIUS CATHOLIC CHURCH 10827 S. Pioneer Sanla Fe Springs, Ca. 90670 (213) 863-8734 CHRISTIAN CHURCH FIRST CHRISTIAN CHURCH 6200 King Bell, Ca.

90201 (213) 560-4252 CHRISTIAN (DISCIPLE OF CHRIST) DOWNEY MEMORIAL CHRISTIAN CHURCH 8441 E. Florence Downey, Ca. Child Care. (213) 869-7291 Worship Services 10:30 a.m. EVANGELICAL FREE EVANGELICAL FREE CHURCH 6701 Alondra, Paramount, Ca.

90723 (213) 634-7988 CHRISTIAN SCIENCE FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST 6712 S. Washington Whittier, Ca. 90601 (213) 693-4249 Sun. 10 a.m., Wed. 8:00 p.m.

SIXTH CHURCH OF CHRIST SCIENTIST 3401 Studebaker Long Beach, Ca. 90808 (213) 425-8425 Sun. 10 a.m., 7:30 p.m. S.C.C. BIBLE COLLEGE COMMUNITY CHAPEL 12400 Studebaker Norwalk, Ca.

90550 (213) 888-0072 DISCIPLES OF CHRIST FIRST CHRISTIAN CHURCH 13820 Studebaker Norwalk, Ca. 90650 "The Friendly Church" (213) 863-3485 Minister: Kyle Lindsey Ermolan; Cinch School Classes: 9:15 a.m. Sunday (For All Ages) Worship: 10:30 a.m. Sunday, child care provided. JEWISH (CONSERVATIVE) TEMPLE BETH SHALOM 3538 Elm Long Beach, Ca.

90807 (213) 426-6413 For Advertising Information, Call Penney decided to locate in Town Center, it closed stores in Montebello and Monterey Park. Town Center's developers incorporated the kind of 1980s amenities designed to lure shoppers to a mall and keep them inside for a long time. There are benches on which to sit and rest weary feet. High glass ceilings flood the two -story mall with light. The food court's glass wall allows diners to view the outdoors from inside an unusual atrium -like, trilevel space.

Retail heavyweights JC Penney, Mervyn's, and May Co. anchor the mall, which has 168 smaller retailers, including a pet store stocked with puppies, guppies and kittens. One of the exceptions to the standard lineup of mall shops is Dark Alley. Around the corner from Motherhood Maternity, Dark Alley offers a change of pace from suburban mall life. Like the trendy stores that line Los Angeles' Melrose Avenue, Dark Alley features artsy greeting cards, party favors, black wrought-iron candlesticks, up-to-the-minute fashion watches and risque posters.

Then there is Lotus, an Asian gift store stocked to the ceiling with jade jewelry, antiques, vases, lamps, miniature carvings and other art objects. Town Center is shopping for another anchor store, a mid-level retail companion for May Fults said. He hopes to attract a store such as the Broadway. Long Beach Directory JEWISH REFORM CONGREGATION TEMPLE ISRAEL 3528 E. Third Long Beach, Ca.

90805 (213) 434-0996 TEMPLE NER TAMID 10629 Lakewood Boulevard, Downey, Ca. 90241 (213) 861-9276 LUTHERAN E.L.C.A. FAITH LUTHERAN CHURCH, E.L.C.A. 13431 Paramount South Gate, Ca. 90280 (213) 634-1484 Rev.

Rolando L. Solon Worship 8:30 a.m. Child Care Provided Sunday School 9:45 a.m. LUTHERAN MISSOURI SYNOD GOOD SHEPHERD LUTHERAN CHURCH 13200 S. Clark Downey, Ca.

90242 (213) 803-4459 Early Worship 8 a.m. Sunday School Bible Class 9:30 a.m. Mid Morning Worship 10:45 a.m. Evening Worship 7 p.m. Christian Day School.

MESSIAH LUTHERAN CHURCH 10711 Paramount Downey, CA 90241 (213) 923-1215 Rev. Norman W. Stoppenhagen Sunday Morning Worship: 8:00 a.m. and 10:45 a.m. Sunday School and Adult Bible Class: 9:30 a.m.

Child care provided. MESSIANIC JEWISH TEMPLE AVIV JUDEA MESSIANIC 8111 Walker SL, La Palma.Ca. (714) 861-0444 Services, Saturday 5:15 p.m. UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST FIRST CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH, UCC 241 Cedar Long Beach, Ca. 90802 (213) 436-2256 Church School 9:00 (All Ages) Worship 10:00 Dr.

Mary Ellen Kisby Senior Minister CHURCH OF THE NAZARENE BIXBY NORTH CHURCH OF THE NAZARENE 37 E. Mountain View, Long Beach, Ca. (213) 422-1845 TELEGRAPH ROAD CHURCH OF THE NAZARENE 9520 Telegraph Downey, Ca. 90240 (213) 869-5516 Sunday School 9:30 a.m., Sunday Night 6:00 p.m. Morning Worship 10:40 a.m., Wednesday Night 7:00 p.m.

NON-DENOMINATIONAL TEACHING OF THE INNER CHRIST 1775 Bellflower Long Beach, Ca. 90815 (213) 498-9211 PENTECOSTAL CALVARY APOSTOLIC CHURCH 5035 Hedda Lakewood, Ca. 90712 (213) 925-0707 APOSTOLIC ASSEMBLY IGLESIA AP0ST0LIC0 PENTECOSTAL 113 S. Fourth St. Montebello, Ca.

90640 (213) 726-9727 RELIGIOUS SCIENCE LONG BEACH CHURCH OF RELIGIOUS SCIENCE 505 E. 36th Long Beach, Ca. 90807 (213) 427-5833 Sunday 10:30 a.m. RELIGIOUS SCIENCE OF DOWNEY 10000 Paramount Downey, Ca. 90240 (213) 928-6469 Mike Marsh (213) 403-4183 inoi even me glow ot nostalgia can make Paddison Square, a 1960s-era shopping center, look good.

"It's getting tired," conceded Dave Dresnick, property manager for part of the aging shopping complex at the corner of Norwalk Boulevard and Imperial Highway in Norwalk. Strung along a drab parking lot, the stores have a basic box look that has not changed since the center was built. For years there has been talk of renovating Paddison Square. In 1985 an Orange County developer had big plans to enclose the outdoor center, add 40 stores and a movie theater and attract new department stores. The proposal died, although Dresnick said remodeling is still being discussed.

The center has several owners, and Dresnick said it has been difficult to get them all to agree on a renovation scheme. The success of Los Cerritos Center and the recent renovation of Stonewobd Shopping Center in Downey have also worked against Paddison's revival. Of the 45 largest malls in Los Angeles County, Paddison Square ranked 44th in total retail sales last year, virtually the same level they were in 1984. Sales declined nearly 8 from 1988 to 1989 and the center's square-foot sales volume was a lowly $67 last year, far below any other major center in the area. A Montgomery Ward, along with a Treasure Hunt and Thrifty Drug, dominate the center, which otherwise offers simple neighborhood services to Norwalk's largely working-class residents: a couple of banks, a self-service laundry, video store, cleaners, a post office, a doughnut shop and the like.

The House of Fabrics is closed. auu uuney wiiii ibui i wicuiye BRING IN THIS COUPON Breast) (Leg He) YS FRIENDL I Served Dailv After 12 Noon Thigh With only about 16,500 residents, a lot of oil wells and industry, Santa Fe Springs would not seem to be the most promising home for a shopping mall. But when a developer suggested that one be built next to an old Sears store, the city was interested enough to say yes and dig into its pockets to subsidize the project. Five years after the Santa Fe Springs Mall opened, merchants still seem to be wondering whether the old oil town is a good place to set up shop. About a third of the mall's stores are empty, many of them never leased.

Boarded-up storefronts checker the enclosed one-story mall of stucco and cinder blocks at Telegraph and Carmenita roads at the eastern edge of the city. "A lot of people aren't coming to it because there's not a lot in it," remarked Suzi Royls, the manager of a women's clothing store, noting that several small shops in the mall closed this year. In a Catch-22, merchants are wary of the mall because there are not enough shoppers, and shoppers stay away because there aren't enough shops, nor are there any big-name department stores. While conceding that it is taking longer than expected to lease the mall, Santa Fe Springs' planning and development director, Bob Orpin, called the redevelopment project a moderate success that has emerged as the city's major retail center. It is part of the city's campaign to expand its commercial base beyond the oil and heavy industry that Santa Fe Springs was long known for.

New office and light industrial space has also been built in recent years, and the city gets California Grown, Chicken That's Good Enough Polly's uses fresh Zacky Farms California raised chicken; these chickens are 100 natural with no preservatives no additives. Topped with 12 herbs and spices, and slow ccjoked to perfection. Slow cooking at high heat means two-thirds less calories for you. How do you top a chicken like that? With Polly's own zesty Orange Dijon sauce, of course. ly.t.iiwo ucuwuuo iijun Polly's Fresh Zcsty Orange 4t AA Dijon Chicken Compl 5 $aC95 GREAT MEAL! GREAT VALUE! MEAL INCLUDES fc- fes, Vi Chicken Light (Wing '4 unicken uark "Plus VJJ "Lllo an fcxtra Leg or I high) Polly's Zesty Orange Dijon Sauce tops the fresh spit-roasted chicken.

Meal Sewed With Two Side Dishes: Uatfc Mr Garden Blend Rice Fresh Steamed Veaetables SOUTHEAST LONG BEACH ffios Angeles iEimrs Southeast Offfcv: 12750Centar Court. Suite 150, Cerritos Towne Center, Cerritos 9070 1 Phone. News and Advertising: (2 13) 924-8603 Long Beach Editorial Office: 444 W. Ocean Suite 601, 90802 Phone. News: (213)432-5414 Lot Angelea Office (toll free): Circulation Department: (2 1 3) 639-1 200 Classilied Advertising: (2 13) 608-01 1 1 William B.

Rood, Suburban Editor Tom Sellers, SoutheastLong Beach Editor (You may substitute one of Polly's other side dishes for rice or vegetables) A Slice of Lemon Meringue Pie, lur suostitute folly tsoysen Tasty Foafeft Kt VJ WHERE THE SERVICE ISALWA berry zackv CERRITOS, FULLERTON. HUNTINGTON BEACH IRVINE, LAGUNA HILLS, LONG BEACH (Atlantic Ave.) LONG BEACH (Los Coyotes LOS ALAMITOS ORANGE, SANTA ANA, SANTA MONICA, WHITTIER Coupon good Dec. 26 -Feb. 5, 1991. Subject to availability.

Ofler not valid in conjunction with For home delivery, call 1-800-LA TIMES. other promotions. Limit 2 specials per coupon..