Investors may buy Dalidio’s property

By Sally Connell
sconnell@thetribunenews.com

A group of investors is pursuing an option agreement to buy 131 acres of south San Luis Obispo land from Ernie Dalidio, property that the rancher has spent the better part of two decades trying to get developed.

Such an agreement could mean the local investors group would take over trying to get the property annexed to the city and permitted for the development of a commercial retail center, according to Carol M. Florence, a principal planner for Oasis Associates who is representing the investors.

Option agreements are usually formed to sell a piece of property for a certain price by a specific date if permits, financing and other needs of the buyer are met. As of Tuesday, there were no details available about the option agreement under consideration for the Dalidio property.

“We are hoping by the end of the week that negotiations over the option agreement are finalized,” Florence said.

Dalidio did not return calls for comment Tuesday. His attorney, Michael Morris, said he and Dalidio were not at liberty to discuss the matter and stressed that “denying something does not mean that all the wild rumors are true.”

The land in question lies between Highway 101 and Los Osos Valley Road adjacent to the SLO Promenade, the shopping center that has Gottschalks, Staples and Cost Plus World Market among its tenants.

SLO Promenade II LLC is the name of the limited liability corporation pursuing the option agreement with Dalidio, Florence said.

The principals are John M. Wilson, Thomas Murrell and Rudy Bachmann. Murrell and Wilson are among the investors in Centervest Capital, the owner of the SLO Promenade. Bachmann is the president of Specialty Construction Inc. of San Luis Obispo.

The 131 acres being considered for the option were the subject of Measure J, which passed with 65 percent of the countywide vote in November 2006. That measure would have allowed development of retail stores, a business park, a hotel, residences, an organic farm and sports fields on the site of the Dalidio Ranch.

San Luis Obispo Superior Court Judge Roger Picquet earlier this year invalidated Measure J, saying it conflicted with a state law that allows local airport land use commissions to govern safety around airfields.

The property at issue has a contentious history. The San Luis Obispo City Council had voted to annex it and approved a retail development there after extensive negotiations, but that decision was overturned by voters in 2005.

The retail project that Florence is expected to propose will be smaller than what Dalidio sought through Measure J, she said.

Bill Bird, a Los Angeles real estate developer, and Scott Dabney, a builder based in Texas, are believed to hold a prior option agreement to develop the Dalidio Ranch. They did not return calls Tuesday.

Shelly Stanwyck, assistant city administrative officer for San Luis Obispo, said the city will deal with whatever applications might come in. Stanwyck confirmed that Florence has been meeting with staff about what can be done on the property.

Florence is the planner working with WestPac Investments on two downtown San Luis Obispo projects: the proposed Garden Street Terraces and Railroad Square, currently under construction. She is also the principal planner on the proposed Prefumo Creek Commons project by Madonna Properties, a shopping center that will be built between the Dalidio land and Los Osos Valley Road.

“I’m looking forward to working with the city, which I work with all the time,” Florence said. “I have confidence that we can pull together a project that will meet the requirements of the city general plan.”

She said that it will be smaller than the project approved by voters with Measure J, but no solid plans will be drawn up until an agreement is reached.