Swap Meet Land In San Fernando Goes Back in Play By JACQUELINE FOX Staff Reporter Once again, the 35-acre property that has served as home to the San Fernando Valley Swap Meet in the city of San Fernando since the 1970s is expected to go into escrow. City officials say Los Angeles-based developer Robertson Properties Group, a subsidiary of Pacific Theatres Corp., has agreed to purchase 17.5 acres of the property at Arroyo Avenue and Glenoaks Boulevard, and has plans to bring in possibly three big-box retailers. The Los Angeles Unified School District has agreed to purchase the remaining portion and plans to build a high school specializing in the arts and advanced sciences. San Fernando City Administrator Jose Pulido said the current owners, Richard Dunn and the estate of William Hannon have agreed on a sale price of $22 million, and expects escrow to open as early as next week. This is the third time in as many years a developer has come forth with a plan to redevelop the swap meet. Nearly two years ago, Randy Roth with Sherman Oaks-based Sunquest Development LLC. said he purchased the entire property for $28 million and was courting tenants. He also said he’d bought a 40-acre parcel in Sun Valley where he intended to build a new swap meet site for the roughly 1,000 vendors who now sell their wares in San Fernando, but the deal never came about. In May of 2000, Los Angeles-based Regency Realty Corp. also attempted to buy the property but backed off. The on-and-off again sale of the property has upset the vendors for years, fearing the loss of their only source of income. Roth’s plan was well received because he had promised to build a new site, offered them relocation assistance and even planned to bring shuttles in to take them to and from San Fernando, where most live. Pulido said part of this latest agreement includes provisions for relocating the swap meet and helping vendors with the move. He added that, because the developer is connected to the Pacific Theatre chain, which has moved several swap meet sites at the company’s drive-in theatres, there is strong belief the deal will go through.
