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Community Gathering at Rancho Del Mar September 15

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Aptos Community Gathering on Friday, 9/15

Most Aptosians know that the new owners of the Rancho Del Mar Shopping Center are working on making renovations to the center. As a consequence of these coming changes, the shopping center has notified several merchants that their leases will be ending on October 1st. These merchants have been at the shopping center for as long as most folks will remember, but now, they’ll have to move.

These businesses are Sofia’s Taqueria, Showtime Pizzeria, Eric’s Deli Cafe, and Baskin Robbins. Many folks in the community are understandably upset and sad to think of these long-time businesses leaving our community. However, the merchants themselves will be experiencing significant financial loss and hardship as a result of this, and the Aptos community would like to help.

The folks at the Aptosia Facebook group are organizing a Cash Mob for Friday, September 15th from 5:00 to 8:00 PM. Everyone is welcome to attend – please show up and show your support for these merchants who have served us so well over the many years they’ve been at Rancho Del Mar. Come on out and meet your neighbors, and say goodbye to these businesses – and let’s hope they come back to us soon!

Rancho del Mar Meeting Set for February 23

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Public Meeting
Public Meeting

Supervisor Zach Friend has announced a new meeting with Terramar, the current owners of the Rancho del Mar Shopping Center. Terramar held a community meeting in the spring of last year, at which time they indicated the shopping center would be undergoing a “remodel” over the next 1-2 years. Nearly a year has passed, with no visible changes to the center except for increasing vacancy; many Aptosians are increasingly concerned.

As a result, Terramar has planned another community meeting at Seascape Golf Course Clubhouse from 6-7:30 pm on Thursday, February 23 (with the program starting closer to 6:30). They will be sharing their design plans with the community at this meeting and requesting feedback.

If you have questions directly for Terramar you can contact Bruce Walton at BWalton@terramarcenters.com. If you have any input you’d like to give to Supervisor Friend, please call him at 831-454-2200.

What: Rancho Del Mar Community Meeting
Where: Seascape Golf Course
When: Thursday, February, 23 – 6:00-7:30 pm

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The Colonel has Left the Building

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Kentucky Fried Chicken in Aptos is Gone
Kentucky Fried Chicken in Aptos is Gone

The lower end of the Rancho del Mar Shopping Center is turning into a veritable ghost town, as another of its tenants have closed up shop. Early this month, the Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant shut its doors, with apparently no prior notice to any of their customers.

The plastic lighted sign has been turned around, and the letters and logo can be seen as a reversed ghostly image in the sign post. A note taped to the door gives thanks for “many years of patronage” and refers customers to two nearby KFC locations.

Nobody seems to know precisely why the Colonel has left the building – but it seems the most likely reason is that their lease was up and the new owners of the shopping center raised the rate to the point where business at the location was no longer viable.

A lot of folks will say good riddance to bad rubbish – but what comes next? The owner of Rancho del Mar, TRC (formerly known as Terramar Retail Centers), isn’t talking. We’ll just have to watch that space and see what pops up.

Kentucky Fried Chicken in Aptos is Gone

Rancho del Mar Community Meeting Set for April 28th

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Terramar Retail Centers
Terramar Retail Centers

Supervisor Zach Friend has announced there will be a community meeting with Terramar Retail Centers, the new owners of the Rancho del Mar Shopping Center. The future of Rancho del Mar has been up in the air for a while now, and with increasing vacancies of late (especially the recent loss of the movie theater), a lot of folks are wondering what plans the new owners have for the property.

The meeting will be held at the Seascape Golf Club on Thursday, April 28th at 6:30 PM. Given the acute degree of interest which the community has expressed about the center, the event is expected to be heavily attended. For this reason, folks are being asked to RSVP for the meeting using this link.

If anyone has questions or input they would like to give in advance, they can contact Bruce Walton with Terramar at bwalton@terramarcenters.com

Online Petition for Rancho del Mar

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Sign the Online Petition
Sign the Online Petition

A group of concerned citizens have posted a message on the neighborhood networking site NextDoor.com about an Online Petition for Rancho del Mar which has been created:

Dear Neighbors,

Over 75 messages have been posted on Nextdoor.com about the closure of the Aptos Twin movie theater and the future of the Rancho Del Mar shopping center. The overwhelming majority of our comments have expressed shock, sadness and frustration at Terramar Centers’ failure to retain the Twin and their disregard for our–the community of Aptos–input into this decision. Certainly more changes will be coming to Rancho Del Mar. Let’s make sure our voices are heard BEFORE, not after, plans are finalized by petitioning TerraMar Centers TO HOLD PUBLIC MEETINGS ABOUT THE RANCHO DEL MAR REDEVELOPMENT PROJECT.

CLICK THIS LINK TO SIGN THE PETITION: http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/rancho

We will copy and submit this petition to the local contact for the developer, Bruce Walton on Feb. 10, 2016. If you wish to write a letter of your own, great! Write Bruce Walton: BWalton@terramarcenters.com

Final Curtain Call at the Aptos Cinema

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Final Curtain Call at Aptos Cinemas
Final Curtain Call at Aptos Cinemas

This week saw the Final Curtain Call at the Aptos Cinema, which closed on January 26th, 2015 after 45 years of operation. The new owners of the Rancho del Mar Shopping Center have elected not to renew the Cinema’s lease, which will expire at the end of the month. The word on the street is that the shopping center’s owners were not interested in negotiating anything with the Cinema’s operators. It seems that they have new plans for the space, although they have not shared that with anyone in the community.

In place of one of the usual movie posters, a notice outside the entrance read:

Aptos Cinemas Closing

We regret that we have been unable to come to terms with the Aptos Cinemas Owner, Terramar Realty. We look forward to our patrons visiting us at our other locations, Landmark’s Nickeloden Theater and Del Mar Theatre. We will continue to feature great films and provide superior customer service to the Santa Cruz community.

January 26, 2016 will be the last day of business for Landmark’s Aptos Cinemas. We will be ending our run with THE REVENANT and STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS. Please stop by for a film and say goodbye. The Aptos Management, and staff in particular, extend thanks to our customers and friends; we loved entertaining you at this location.

We can expect more turnover in the Rancho del Mar Shopping Center in coming months, as many leases will be up for renewal soon. County Supervisor Zach Friend has indicated that significant rent increases in the center are likely, and that the owners of the center will be looking to sign leases with national chains and franchises.

See also: Santa Cruz Sentinel article

Zach Friend Speaks at Aptos Chamber

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Zach Friend Re-Election
Zach Friend Announces Re-Election Campaign

Supervisor Zach Friend was today’s special guest at the Aptos Chamber of Commerce.  He was introduced by Jimmy Panetta (son of Leon), Deputy District Attorney for the county of Monterey, who is himself running to replace retiring U.S. Representative Sam Farr.

The Supervisor, who is currently running for re-election, spoke of his continuing resolve to work for progress on challenges he’s identified, such as affordability of housing, jobs, high-speed internet, water, and traffic among others.  His remarks seemed well received by those in attendance, which included his wife Tina and young son Elliott.

He later took a few questions from the crowd, and provided an update on Rancho del Mar Shopping Center project.  He replied that in a meeting with new ownership 1-2 months ago, the owners indicated they have no immediate plans to do anything with the property.  He added that the new owners know it needs a remodel but do not feel like the larger scale project envisioned previously was appropriate.

See also:  FriendForSupervisor.com

Zach Friend’s January Aptos Update

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Supervisor Zach Friend
Zach Friend represents Aptos on the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors

Santa Cruz County 2nd District Supervisor Zach Friend’s January Aptos update was given this morning at the Aptos Chamber of Commerce breakfast meeting. The meeting was very well attended, with nary an empty set in the house. The Supervisor spoke for about 15 minutes, and then took questions for another 15 minutes.

His entire remarks have been recorded and are available in audio format, which you can listen to here. There is a tremendous amount of detail which many folks will find interesting to hear:

Zach Friend at the Aptos Chamber, January 2015

A summary of the topics discussed is as follows:

The Sustainable Santa Cruz Plan: the new plan will bring the greatest changes in land use, transportation, and housing ever seen in Santa Cruz county, and should enable appreciable improvements in the kinds of real estate development (both commercial and residential) that can be done, to bring more jobs and affordable housing to Santa Cruz (and Aptos).

Rancho del Mar Redevelopment: Supervisor Friend says that the development company which has purchased the shopping center has not yet been willing to discuss with the county its plans, however it seems as though re-development of Rancho del Mar will now be put on the back burner. This is good news and bad news; the bad news is, the sale triggered a re-assessment of the property’s value, which will significantly increase property tax – the cost of which will ultimately be paid by the tenants. Tenants will enjoy higher rents, and nobody will enjoy any improvements in the center for some time to come.

Aptos Village Redevelopment: the county has done 100% of the work it can do at this point to green-light the project. The ball is entirely in the hands of the developer, Barry Swenson Builders. Barry Swenson Builders have not actually applied for the permit yet, but they have already signaled that the project will be going forward by ordering the closing of the Aptos Post Office Bike Jumps. Their county entitlements for the project require that they do at least apply for the permit by the end of 2015, so something should be happening soon.

Seacliff Village Redevelopment: the Supervisor views Seacliff Village as becoming a “crown jewel” in Santa Cruz county. The project should be starting in about April with the under-grounding of the utility cables. The plan includes streetscape improvements, a new median, a new entrance to Seacliff State Beach, and new sidewalks all the way from the State Park to Soquel Drive, eventually tying in with the rail trail.

The Rail Trail Project: the Supervisor reiterated the line that the Proposition 116 funds which were used to purchase the rail line require that the county either show that “active” rail service is not economically feasible, or develop passenger rail service. There is an ongoing study to determine the feasibility of the service, the first results of which should be available in April. Unless active train service can be shown to be infeasible, you can expect that train service will be “part of the matrix.”

Mar Vista Overpass: The project is funded and now it appears that construction will begin in 2017.

Rancho del Mar Shopping Center has been Sold

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Safeway in Rancho del Mar
Safeway Stores Inc has sold Rancho del Mar

With little fanfare, the Rancho del Mar Shopping Center has been Sold to a property development company in Carlsbad, California. Terramar Retail Centers LLC bought a number of properties from Property Development Centers LLC (a subsidiary of Safeway Stores Inc.), including the the proposed Scotts Valley Town Center and our own Rancho Del Mar Shopping Center, in a deal worth $830 million.

Earlier in December, tenants in Rancho del Mar had been asked to provide estoppel certificates to the new buyers, indicating that a sale was imminent. There has been no announcement from Terramar Retail Centers as to what this will mean for the proposed Rancho del Mar Redevelopment project, however it is likely that the Terramar will be planning on making significant changes to the shopping center, as according to their web site, their “primary business is the acquisition and development of exceptional commercial real estate.”

Terramar presently owns a portfolio of 24 shopping centers on the west coast of the United States, mostly around the San Francisco Bay Area, Monterey Bay Area, Los Angeles, San Diego, Portland, and Seattle. Locally, they own the Santa Rita Plaza in Salinas and El Paseo de Saratoga in San Jose. Aptos Community News is keeping an eye on the project and the latest developments, and we’ll work to keep you informed as time goes by.

See also: Safeway Press Release regarding the sale

Le Chef Kitchen and More in Aptos

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Le Chef Kitchen & More
Le Chef Kitchen & More 4.5 star rating 23 reviews

Thinking about making a trip over the hill to Sur le Table or Williams Sonoma? Why bother, when Le Chef Kitchen and More is located in the Rancho del Mar Shopping Center in Aptos? Le Chef Kitchen and More in Aptos was opened way back in 2005, by a husband and wife team (Dee Dee and Keang Lee) who really know their stuff. They are very helpful and service-oriented, and provide a very wide selection of unique, high-quality items you may not find anywhere else – even the aforementioned mega-mall kitchenware retailers.

Le Chef Kitchenware in Aptos
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