ALHAMBRA REVITALIZATION EFFORT IS FINALLY SHOWING RESULTS
There’s a Starbucks and a bookstore on one corner, an Italian restaurant on another, a piano bar on another, and soon a microbrewery will be on the last corner of the intersection.
This isn’t Old Pasadena or Santa Monica’s Third Street Promenade, but First and Main in Alhambra.
Alhambra? The East L.A. city long has been known more for Chinese restaurants and middle-class neighborhoods than quaint shopping districts. But city officials and several businesses and developers are confident that a downtown renaissance is on the way, though Alhambra isn’t necessarily trying to be a regional shopping destination.
“We don’t want to be Old Town or the Santa Monica Promenade. We want retail, entertainment and restaurant uses that service our community,” said City Manager Julio Fuentes.
The city has attracted an eclectic mix of locally operated boutiques, restaurants and bakeries, along with a handful of big-name draws, including a new 3,500-seat Edwards Megaplex, Ross Dress for Less, L.A. Fitness and Baja Fresh.
In all, about $100 million has been invested in the past two to three years in private and public money.
“Recent projects have paved the way this town is going,” said Ted Slaught, president of Hillcrest Development Partners LLC, the development arm of Charles Dunn Co., which owns eight properties along Main. “It’s going to be one of the more unique mixes of tenants in a downtown area.”
While several facades have been improved, thanks to Community Development Block Grant funds, others remain a bit tired looking, and about 10 spaces sit vacant. Also unclear is how the changes will be received in this ethnically diverse city of 100,000, which is 40 percent Asian, 35 percent Latino and 25 percent white.
But if L.A. Fitness is any guide, Main Street’s prospects are good. While the company concluded early on that the city’s multi-ethnic mix would not match well with its typical customer profile, the Alhambra location is one of the chain’s top performers, according to Chief Financial Officer Paul Norris.
There are takers for several empty spaces Cuban restaurant Versailles and a Santa Monica shoe store called O’ My Sole are both reviewing draft leases. Togo’s Eatery, a cigar shop and a bath and beauty shop from Whittier are also exploring moves to downtown, along with other retailers.
The transformation is long in the making. Most of downtown was built in the 1930s, when Alhambra was a rural community full of orange trees and chicken yards.
The area was largely rebuilt in the boom following World War II, and altered further through the years. It remained a Main Street-style shopping district until the 1970s, when a Sears sprouted up on the west side of town and a regional mall was built not far away in Arcadia.
“That series of developments sucked the life out of downtown and the department stores on Main Street,” Slaught said.
A redevelopment area downtown was created in 1976. Sidewalks were improved and palm trees planted in the early 1980s, followed by a Mervyn’s and Ralphs center. But the revitalization effort really began to pick up about four years ago.
“Things have changed considerably because the City Council has really focused on revitalizing the downtown area. It’s high on their agenda. They put people in certain positions to make things happen and committed the resources necessary,” Fuentes said.
He and other city officials have methodically focused on finding new tenants. First came Charlie’s Trio restaurant. City officials went to an outlet of the L.A. eatery, which was looking to expand, had a meal there, and then had a talk with the owner in an effort to “convince him to take a chance on Alhambra,” Fuentes said.
The same strategy was tried on other restaurants and retailers, with city officials offering money to pay for tenant improvements if the outlet agreed to move in. “Every time we enticed a tenant, we used the success stories to entice others,” Fuentes said.
Block grant funds or other public resources have been used to assist with tenant improvements, ranging from $50,000 up to $1.2 million for the $30 million Edwards project. It also is investing $2.5 million in a parking structure behind the Ross store.
That leaves about $2 million for further tenant assistance. “We can probably string the money out and leverage it to go for another 10 or 11 projects,” Fuentes said. “We’re hoping we will plant enough seeds so the private sector will take over.”
The biggest draw is certain to be the new cinema with stadium seating. Construction, which has been delayed by the complexities of assembling properties and relocating tenants, is scheduled to begin in March.
