A F Gilmore Co

May Co. California said Monday that it plans to join Nordstrom in a controversial Farmers Market Mall that developers propose to open in spring, 1993, next to the existing Farmers Market at Third Street and Fairfax Avenue in Los Angeles.

May Co. California said Monday that it plans to join Nordstrom in a controversial Farmers Market Mall that developers propose to open in spring, 1993, next to the existing Farmers Market at Third Street and Fairfax Avenue in Los Angeles.

The company that owns the Farmers Market submitted a proposal last week to develop more than 2 million square feet of shops, offices, apartments and a hotel in a project that slow-growth advocates say will overwhelm the traffic-clogged Fairfax District. The project is only one of several large-scale and controversial developments expected to be proposed in the area, but is further along than the others. Submission of an environmental assessment form by the A. F. Gilmore Co.

With the proposed redevelopment of Farmers Market, it is safe to say the Southland will again lose a large chapter in its quickly fading history. But what becomes worse about this loss is the ardent indifference of Hilty, president of the A.F. Gilmore Co., and the Gilmore family, which owns Farmers Market. Their reasons behind the redevelopment evolve from competition. Both Hilty and the Gilmore Co. believe the market fails to be competitive with modern-day establishments such as malls and department stores.

The Farmers Market Historic Preservation plan and first Los Angeles Ecological Cities Conference have won the Westside Prize of the Westside Urban Forum. Recognized for representing special qualities that create livable and vital urban communities, the projects, celebrating the past and future of Los Angeles, were among a dozen nominated for the prize. A.F. Gilmore Co.

The Los Angeles City Planning Commission said the A.F. Gilmore Co. can go ahead with plans to build two department stores on a 31-acre site behind Farmers Market in the Fairfax District. While the company also wanted to build a hotel and office building, the commissioners said that would be too much development for the chronically congested area. Hank Hilty, president of the Gilmore Co, welcomed the 5-0 vote.

A Los Angeles City Council committee approved a proposal Tuesday to build a 700,000-square-foot shopping center at the Farmers Market. The proposal, which was written by City Council President John Ferraro, calls for two department stores to be built at the site, which houses a noted open-air market. The 2-0 vote by the Planning and Land Use Management Committee set the stage for a debate by the full City Council Friday. A request from the developers, the A.F. Gilmore Co.

The Chamber of Commerce has named its new slate of directors and has reelected Christopher Baumgart to a second term as board chairman. Baumgart, president of Shoreline Professional Video Systems, won 26 to 13--"an overwhelming majority," a statement by the chamber said.

Earlier this month, Kokomo Cafe owner Alfredo Diaz was disturbed to learn that the Farmers Market owner, the A.F. Gilmore Co., decided not to renew his popular Cajun restaurant's lease. Diaz, who owns the Eat Well restaurant brand, plans to replace Eat Well's Beverly and Martel location with Kokomo next month, but laments what he calls the "poor operational choices" made by Gilmore (Gilmore declined to comment).

Starbucks to Open Outlet at Farmers Market: The Los Angeles landmark is dipping its toe into trendy waters with the construction that began this week of a Starbucks coffee outlet. The haute coffee emporium is scheduled to open in July and will feature an exterior patio that will open up the 3rd Street side of the market for the first time. Farmers Market, which is located at 3rd Street and Fairfax Avenue, is also building a newsstand next to the Starbucks.

The A.F. Gilmore Co. will appeal a city official's ruling that would limit its proposed development at Farmers Market in the Fairfax District to 700,000 square feet, a spokesman for the firm said Wednesday. The company and its partner, Chicago-based JMB Urban Investment & Development, are working on a counterproposal that they hope to present to the City Planning Commission at a hearing set for Dec. 6, said Gilmore attorney Allan J. Abshez.