According to project manager Jane Vaughan, Forum--the developer poised to turn the vacant Town Center Mall property into a new "lifestyle center" similar to San Jose's Santana Row--is now just one of a half-dozen bidders on the property.

The project has been stalled in bankruptcy court since former property owner American Mall Properties went bankrupt in September 2002. By acquiring the property, current owner Lehman ALI assumed the debts from the bankruptcy.

Vaughan estimates that a developer successfully bidding on the project will have to pay almost $75 million to get the property out of court and buy it from Lehman.

"Once someone buys the property out of bankruptcy court, you're going to see some hustle on the project," Vaughan predicted.

At the end of 2004, Forum representatives said the company was ready to begin demolition as soon as the holiday shopping season ended. But Forum was unable to line up the financing in time to acquire the project. Because of the delay, Lehman ALI opened bidding back up for the sale of the property, and got six bids by its Feb. 11 deadline.

Forum has done extensive work on the project since coming into Sunnyvale. Representatives of the company held a number of community meetings, appeared at planning commission and city council meetings and--at the end of 2004--seemed to be ready to start demolitions.

Vaughan says representatives from Forum--who she has been working closely with throughout the planning of the project--said the company has the funding to acquire the property, but who gets to build is up to Lehman ALI, with help from the Sunnyvale Redevelopment Agency.

If Forum is unable to get the property, there is no telling how long it could take to create a new project, but Vaughan says all the legwork Forum did may help them in the decision process.

"I frankly think that Forum will be able to move forward quicker than the other bidders--who are effectively starting from zero--and that may help them," Vaughan said. "Like anyone else, I'm anxious to see it getting mopped up and seeing them getting moving on the project."