DOWNEY - City officials have been in contact with representatives for Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour about the possibility of the nostalgic restaurant expanding into Downey.According to the Orange County Register, Farrell's is scouting Southern California locations "at least 20 miles away" from its current Mission Viejo base. The article did not mention how many stores Farrell's plans to open. According to its website, Farrell's currently operates restaurants in Mission Viejo and Santa Clarita, in addition to two stores in Hawaii. It previously operated a restaurant at Stonewood Center that was shuttered several years ago. "Farrell's requires between 6,500 and 8,000 square feet of space for its restaurants and is actively looking for high profile restaurant locations with plentiful parking," real estate investment firm Grubb & Ellis Company, which is representing Farrell's in its expansion, told the OC Register. Councilman Mario Guerra said city officials contacted Farrell's several months ago regarding "another business venture in Downey." "Our staff and I met with the owners and expressed our interest and willingness to work with them and to facilitate their going "back to the future" here in Downey," Guerra said. "They were very interested in us also. All I can say is that there is a genuine interest on all parties. We discussed several locations for them and we will keep everyone updated." -Eric Pierce, city editor

********** Published: December 23, 2010 - Volume 9 - Issue 36