The Scotts Valley City Council has unanimously voted to buy what will be the gateway to the anticipated Town Center, the last major parcel the city needed.
“I’m happy about this,” Vice Mayor Dene Bustichi said. “It’s another key piece of property for the town center project.”
Council members agreed Jan. 20 to pay $1.9 million to buy the nearly 1½-acre parcel owned by Suburban Propane. The city will pay another $600,000 to help the business move to Janis Way, across the street from Threshold Enterprises.
According to staff reports, the selling price of the property is $7 per square foot less than what it was valued at in 2008.
Scotts Valley now owns what will serve as the gateway to the anticipated Town Center, envisioned as a 160,000-square-foot outdoor shopping mall with commercial and residential space and a plaza.
The city has been trying to move Suburban Propane off Mount Hermon Road for almost two decades, Bustichi said. The purchase approved at the council meeting concludes years of broken deals, threats of eminent-domain action and a planned move to Lockhart Gulch Road that never reached fruition.
The city also hopes to move or buy out Amerigas, another propane company on Mount Hermon Road, before the Town Center moves ahead. But Bustichi said that property is less vital because of its location. Amerigas is adjacent to property owned by the San Lorenzo Valley Water District, which pumps water from a well on the site.
“The Suburban Propane property is a little more key,” Bustichi said.
The purchase solidifies the Town Center project, which will begin construction, Mayor Jim Reed said, once the economy strengthens and retailers feel comfortable building for business.
There is no set timeline for the project’s start or completion date.
“This is the culmination of efforts that previous city councils have been making since 1990,” Reed said. “It means we’re going to have a Town Center sooner rather than later, once the economy bounces back.”
