Developers ask Englewood City to expedite termination of city‑center ground lease; executive session set

A joint-venture developer team asked the Englewood City Council on March 3 to expedite termination of the city center ground lease on the former Weingarten property and to transfer title to New Inglewood LLC, saying the change is needed to attract capital and begin redevelopment work. The council did not make a decision and placed the item on the calendar for an executive session next Monday to discuss next steps.

The request was presented by Dan Parumba, chief redevelopment officer for Englewood City, and Brad Power, director of community development. Parumba said staff prepared a neutral memo that outlines "pros and cons" and that the decision is for council to consider. Stu Ogilvy, identified as president of Ogilvy Partners, and Chris King, president and CEO of DPC Companies, introduced the redevelopment team and described the partners’ experience repositioning large retail and mixed‑use sites.

Why it matters: the property is under a prepaid ground lease with roughly 50 years remaining, developers said, and the existing lease structure discourages major reinvestment. The developer team told council it would trade an estimated $20 million in property value to the city — citing the 24 Hour Fitness building, a ground‑floor condominium retail interest and a purchase option on Tokyo Joe’s — and agreed not to sign longer‑term retail leases that would block redevelopment for a two‑year period while master‑plan work continues.

Developers and staff framed three…