After years of delay, a new, scaled-down project at San Pedro’s Ports O’ Call Village is scheduled to be taken up Monday by the Los Angeles Board of Harbor Commissioners.
The commission is expected to approve a ground lease at Ports O’ Call, a dated shopping and dining complex on port-owned land in San Pedro, that would give developers control of the site for the next 50 years.
Developers once talked of building a dining, shopping and entertainment complex to rival Santa Monica’s Third Street Promenade on the 30-acre waterfront site, but now developers Jerico Development and the Ratkovich Group – together the L.A. Waterfront Alliance – are expected to deliver a less ambitious project aimed an updating the existing Ports O’ Call.
The site was developed more than 50 years ago and hasn’t been meaningfully updated since. It remains a hot spot for those looking to grab fresh fish on the weekends, but is quiet during the week.
The San Pedro Chamber of Commerce has been hoping for years for redevelopment to take place at the site, according to the chamber’s President Elise Swanson. The chamber would like to see “a nice blend of old and new” restaurants as part of the project.
“We’re a very strong supporter of the Los Angeles Waterfront Alliance and the redevelopment of the Ports O’ Call,” Swanson said. “We’re excited to see this first phase move forward.”
The developers did not return requests for comment.