Whizin's Center Renovation Nears Completion

Renovation of the is almost complete, according to its owner, Bill Tucker, managing member of the Tucker Investment Group.

According to Tucker, the Phase One construction, which began on Jan. 11, 2010, is scheduled to be finished by the end of August. Phase One involved revamping the interior and exterior of the building, which currently houses , , the and , he said. The parking lot and other aspects will be worked on afterward, he said.

The property itself is a near perfect rectangle of land that is part of the Agoura Village Specific Plan. Bordered by Cornell Road to the west, Roadside Drive to the north and Agoura Road along the south, the property was owned by the Whizin family for more than five decades before being sold to the Calabasas-based investment group in 2007.

Probably most easily characterized by the clock tower and arcade, the area's oldest shopping center has undergone many transformations over the years. At its birth, the location was occupied by a four-pump gas station and small hamburger stand. The center's many renovations included rodeo arena, dirt motorcycle track, the Cornell Corners restaurant—now inhabited by Wood Ranch BBQ & Grill, and a children's go-kart track. The row of buildings now taken up by antique dealers was built in 1968 and the Canyon and arcade were completed in 1974. Agoura's past can be seen in the wagon wheels, buggy hitches and historical signage on display in the arcade.

The most obvious addition will be the skylight, which should create a more public-friendly atrium, said Tucker.

“It’s going to be gorgeous,” he said. “It was a dark space, dark and dusty and dated. And we’re making it bright, white and light.” Tucker said he wants to “honor the past” by keeping the traditional architecture, but modernizing it for the 21st century.

A new water feature, much like the old one, will be built inside, and the landmark clock tower will remain, he said. “[We’re not] just cutting it and starting with a new easel,” Tucker said. “We want a connection to the past, a very strong connection to what was always there.”

Since the building is still under construction, Tucker is not sure about who most of the tenants will be—except for one.

Hugo’s Restaurant, currently with locations in Studio City and West Hollywood, will be moving in, and owner Richard Brenner sounds like he couldn’t be happier about it.

“If excitement could be marked on a scale from one to 10, we’re at 11,” said Brenner. "We’re really happy, really excited.”

He said that Hugo’s hopes to be open about the middle of September. The restaurant, known for its Pasta Mama creation of spaghetti with scrambled eggs, serves breakfast, lunch and dinner.

“We’re a place that not only serves hamburgers and steaks but also vegan and vegetarian options,” said Brenner. “We just try to make food really healthy, while maintaining the quality taste of the food.”

The restaurant will have a back area within the atrium building for outdoor dining, a “dynamic center,” according to Tucker, where people will see each other and be eating inside and outside. Brenner said Hugo’s is using an Agoura-based designer, and the restaurant will be in the theme of Lady Face Mountain. 

“We really feel like we’ll be Agoura-centric in the way ... the place will look and about healthy eating,” he said.

Illece Buckley Weber, vice chair of the city's Planning Commission, said that the future of the center looks promising. It will be new and improved and pedestrian-friendly but will still have the historic tower, not to mention the Canyon Club.

“They’ve done a good job of updating the center but also maintaining our rural architecture and bringing it into the 21st century,” Buckley Weber said. “I’m very excited about it. I think it’s going to be a great addition, a great improvement.”