Caruso Cancels Shops at Santa Anita – Project No Longer an Option for the Developer
Developer Rick Caruso who owns and operates the Grove, among other successful shopping ventures has apparently withdrawn his proposal to build a $500 million outdoor mall at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia. According to Caruso Affiliated proposed in 2004 to build the Shops at Santa Anita, a 825,000-square-foot shopping mall.
The plan was delayed by a legal challenge from rival developer Westfield, which owns a nearby mall, and advocacy group Arcadia First, who consistently maintained that traffic was already at a peak in Arcadia and adding Caruso’s project would be detrimental.
Despite numerous obstacles including a bankruptcy at Santa Anita Park, Caruso soldiered on in the hopes that one day his vision would be realized.
After five years now, it seems that vision is no more. The city of Arcadia approved the project years ago and legal battles forced the inevitable decision.
Calls to Caruso’s offices were not immediately returned.