After seven hours and three motions—two of which failed on 4-3 votes—the project was finally approved 6 to 1, with Melina Hamilton voting against it. But it remains to be seen if Sunnyvale opened a new door or added to downtown's problems.

Antuzzi—who lost two previous businesses to developments in San Jose and Santa Clara—said he hopes his fears are unfounded, because it looks like the Forum and the city are getting the deal they want, at the expense of the small-business owners already downtown.

"If business goes down 20 percent more than where it is now, I know that I'll be losing money, and I'm one of the more successful businesses down here," Antuzzi said.

He and his colleagues are literally on the front lines of the coming struggle to keep customers during construction. While it will be more than two years before many people experience the effects of the project, downtown business owners will feel them as soon as demolition begins.

"I just told some of the people in the city that I hope I'm wrong, and I really do," Antuzzi said. "Construction like this is unfair to small businesses because that light at the end of the tunnel everyone is talking about goes out before they get there."

He said he now has to think about the future of Il Postale, because his lease ends in a year.

"I need to take a long look at staying here through the three or four years of hell, and it is going to be hell," Antuzzi said, referring to the heavy construction period that will drive people away from the downtown and the first years of the new development.

Antuzzi was also disappointed that the downtown businesses' concerns—focused on making sure the project doesn't take business from S. Murphy—were relatively unheard. Antuzzi and several others were asking for a parking-structure exit onto the intersection of S. Murphy and Washington avenues, to give visitors easier access to the historic area.

But not all those in attendance were as worried as Antuzzi about the future of downtown Sunnyvale. A number of people said that the project—once the difficult construction phase is over—will actually help the downtown and the rest of Sunnyvale.

Arley Marley III, chairman of the Chamber of Commerce board of directors, said a "lifestyle center" is exactly what Sunnyvale needs to compete with neighboring malls and downtown areas.

"It's time to shop Sunnyvale," Marley said. "Not Santana Row, and not Valley Fair."

In addition to new retail space downtown, the project is also adding housing to an area where housing is in great demand.

"Of course, the additional 292 housing units is not going to solve the housing problem, but it is going to alleviate some of the pain," local realtor Bo Chang said.

A vocal supporter of the project, Nancy Tivol, reiterated sentiments she has shared throughout the project's long approval process, saying that it's time something was done in the downtown and that she is confident in this project.

"Not only is this a great plan, it is being presented by the third developer to tackle this project. Should it fail, I cannot imagine a fourth willing to try," Tivol said. "If this plan fails, I think what we'll end up with is a monster store whose name ends in 'Mart.'"

But while there were many who shared Tivol's feelings, there was an almost equal number in opposition, especially to the idea that anything being built was better than the current situation.

A number of Friends of Sunnyvale—including President Paul Jay Reed—and their supporters spoke out against the project as they've done since project drafts were first drawn up. Reed said they were greatly disappointed by the decision and the failing of a motion made by former Friends President Melinda Hamilton. Her motion failed because she was asking for the Century movie theater—part of the old American Mall Properties project held over by bankruptcy court—to be lowered from the third floor and for two of the four parking structures to be completely underground.

The theater portion of the motion failed because the deal with Century is from the pre-Forum project days and cannot be easily modified.

Multilevel underground parking structures are not possible, because anything deeper than a single level goes below the area's water table, and results in leaking, which has caused damage to the Mozart buildings for the same reason.

"I really thought that we had a chance, and the three to four vote was pretty exciting, but we just couldn't get that swing vote," Reed said.

Reed—who previously likened the deal to a forced wedding between Sunnyvale, the reluctant bride, and Forum, the overpowering groom—said he was leaving out the shotgun wedding analogies and instead likened the project to a dead fish being plopped down in the middle of town.

And just as the marriage analogy was picked up at the last meeting, several members of the community made reference to it.

"As for the dead fish that this is going to be placed on my plate, I'm looking forward to it," Sunnyvale resident Allen Barker said.

But the Friends of Sunnyvale group was so concerned about the meeting that it sent an email out on Aug. 16, rallying its supporters to come out in force.

Reed said the group was concerned because its members feel the city and developers are working against the wishes of Sunnyvale's residents. Several times they mentioned the 6,000 signatures—not quite 5 percent of the more than 130,000 people in Sunnyvale—collected last year on petitions, which included height restrictions on downtown buildings.

"No matter how much you praise a dead fish, it's still a dead fish. No matter now much you say you want it, it's still a dead fish," Reed said. "And so for all the people who say that something is better than nothing, imagine having a dead fish in your living room."

Although he did not discuss it at the meeting, Reed said he is also afraid that Forum will sell the project to other developers and leave Sunnyvale now that it has the project permits.

"I don't think [Ron Pfohl, managing member of Forum Development Group] really plans to build the project," Reed said. "I think he'll sell it now that he has a marketable project."

But Jane Vaughan, local manager for the project, said that is not the case.

"I think Forum intends to own this project for the long term," Vaughan said, saying that it is would be more profitable for Forum to stick with the project as it grows and develops, because shopping centers can improve as they get older and more established.

Even with the passing of the approval, construction cannot begin until after the coming holiday season, because rubble and dust at Christmas would drive away too many shoppers during peak months.

Vaughan said Forum is looking to begin demolition—which should take almost three months—at the beginning of January 2005. Forum still intends to have it completed 24 months after beginning work. It is required by the city to hold a monthly meeting with downtown businesses to discuss the process and will be keeping a 24-hour phone line open for community concerns or complaints.