30-Year-Old Indoor Mall's Revamp Begins

HUNTINGTON BEACH

Work has begun to transform the aging Huntington Beach Mall, much of it vacant for about two years, into an Italian-style outdoor plaza with 71 shops and restaurants, a 20-screen movie complex and an amphitheater surrounded by restaurants.

Bella Terra, a $170-million redevelopment project, will include open-air walkways, cobblestone paths with gardens and fountains.

The 30-year-old mall, one of the first enclosed malls in Southern California, is scheduled to reopen in mid-2005.