The city of Santa Clarita is once again negotiating with Serrano Development, this time in closed session about property previously identified for a parking structure at the south end of Main Street.
Last year, a controversial deal for new condominiums and retail space on Main Street drew a tongue-lashing from then-Mayor Bill Miranda, who alleged a deal the city made “stinks,” but he had no choice but to approve it.
Now it appears the city is back in closed-door talks with Jason Tolleson, the Serrano principal who was one of the primary targets of Miranda’s criticism.
On the agenda Tuesday in closed session for the City Council is negotiations between City Manager Ken Striplin and Tolleson over a handful of parcels the city owns on the south end of Main Street.
The city’s plan is to put a second parking structure at the other end of Main Street to match the one that accompanies Newhall Crossings, a project Serrano also built on the north end, according to past comments from city officials.
Striplin indicated to the City Council during a previous public discussion of the parking structure that the city would solicit offers.
When asked for the request for proposals on the parking structure, the city shared a multipage solicitation for “a qualified development partner to acquire and develop a 0.86-acre site in Old Town Newhall into a financially feasible, community-supported mixed-use project consistent with the Old Town Newhall Specific Plan.”
City officials sent out the notice in July, while The Hartwell was still being approved, and the proposal period closed three days after The Hartwell received final approval from the Santa Clarita City Council. It also mentions affordable housing.
“The site is comprised of eight parcels of land totaling approximately 0.86 acres. The city may also consider the vacation of select roadway/right of ways adjacent to the site. The site has a restrictive covenant that requires that 15% of residential units on the site be income-restricted for lower-income households. Additionally, there are approximately 85 publicly accessible parking spaces currently on the site. The city desires that any development project align with the Old Town Newhall Specific Plan, which calls for the provision of 400 public parking spaces in the vicinity of this site.”
On Monday, Jason Crawford, the city’s director of community development, said the city put out a request for proposals on the project to “1,000 contacts, (and) 75 groups downloaded the details and we received one response.”
The period for proposals to be submitted closed on Aug. 28, three days after the Santa Clarita City Council approved The Hartwell.
There are eight properties listed on the city’s closed-session agenda. The properties being discussed in closed session, all owned by the city, were recorded between 2018 and 2021, according to records with the Assessor’s Office, include several parcels that wrap around the north side of the roundabout in Newhall, across the street from the city’s recently acquired William S. Hart Park property.
“This parking model lets a patron park in one location and walk around the entire Main Street area to shop, dine and enjoy the area’s amenities,” according to the City Council agenda report for the city’s previous parking structure, which discusses a “park-once” model. “The specific plan calls for two public parking structures to be built, one at the north end and one at the south end of Main Street, with approximately 400 spaces each, to serve the entire district.”
Miranda was the most outspoken critic on the dais last year when The Hartwell was discussed, which the city staff told the council it had to approve, due to an error city staff made. The city failed to notice Tolleson of any objective concerns it had regarding the design within 30 days of its submission.
Residents then spent several meetings complaining about how the deal was made, why parking concerns weren’t being addressed and why the historical courthouse was being added to the project and then razed.
Councilwoman Marsha McLean also shared concerns but voted in favor. The Hartwell was approved 3-0 after both Jason Gibbs and Laurene Weste recused themselves, citing conflicts of interest.
Miranda said publicly Tolleson was paying KHTS too much for its property in the 24300 block, which he based on a previous appraisal, and Tolleson said he needed the land to make the project work. When Miranda asked why there was $400,000 over market going to the radio station instead of a historical mitigation fee for the city, Miranda said, “I don’t like what I’m smelling.”’
