IE Business Daily Business news for the Inland Empire.
Demolition of the Carousel Mall is one step closer.
At a special meeting to discuss the Carousel Mall on October 28, 2020, the San Bernardino City Council directed the city manager to explore options for demolition of the mall. Since that time an RFP (request for proposal) has gone into development for a design-build process for demolition of the site and the protection of nearby properties.
Responses will be accepted from companies that can safely tear down the existing Carousel Mall which has been empty and falling into decay for years, while also preserving nearby historic buildings.
The city desperately wants to see the location developed into something that is an economic generator and not the magnet for vagrancy and other problems that it is now.
According to people familiar with these types of redevelopment projects, the existence of structures that need to be torn down and otherwise mitigated is often a barrier to getting a deal done.
“Sometimes the cost to mitigate can’t be passed on to new construction and still have the deal pencil-out as they say,” said Joseph W. Brady, President of the Bradco Companies in Victorville. The city is money ahead by scraping the site and having a clean site for developers to work with. They will get something done much faster this way and the faster the city can fix this toothache the better.”
A social media kerfuffle led by critics of the Mayor and city management claims that somehow the mayor and Field have misled the public about the process, but in point of fact, the proper procedures are being followed.
“To date the city has spent no money on any process and has incurred no obligations of any kind with regards to the demolition of the Carousel Mall, said city manager Rob Field. “Eventually this all has to go to a vote of the council.”
The RFP is expected to be issued by the city shortly.
