We are all looking forward to getting together in person, but where will that be and what kind of place will it be? We have long been accustomed to identifying neighborhood shopping and entertainment districts as places to gather. Retail and restaurant businesses, along with personal services, have been crucial anchors of public gathering areas and help provide a sense of place that give our communities their distinctive character. However, there is no denying that retail is changing, which means our local gathering places are changing. Throughout the pandemic, the Los Angeles metro area saw significant closures and declines in small businesses. Long before then, however, the character of the retail and commercial gathering place landscape was changing due to the migration of shopping online.
What, if anything, is going to fill the empty storefronts we all see, and how will this evolution impact the sense of place within our westside cities and neighborhoods? Is this an opportunity for under-resourced local business owners and local entrepreneurs to fill these spaces and create a renewed sense of place that serves the needs of residents and stakeholders, or will this just enhance the feelings of gentrification? What alternative concepts are taking shape to bolster brick and mortar shops competition in the increasingly e-commerce driven marketplace?
Come hear from the people on the ground doing the hard work to create retail/commercial opportunities, support existing shops, fund innovative new local businesses, and help these businesses locate in the many empty commercial spaces – and in so doing, shaping our neighborhoods and revitalizing their unique sense of place.
Panelists:
Darrell Menthe, President, Culver City Downtown Business Association & Partner, Sage Law Partners
Parke Miller, Executive Vice President, LPC West
Ed Sachse, President, Kennedy Wilson Property Services
Seta Zorabian, Regional Manager, Small Business Program, Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC)
Moderator:
Emily Bianchi, Senior Project Designer, JERDE
Registration:
WUF Members Free
Nonmembers $35
Student Nonmembers $10
Registration closes for this Zoom panel on November 16th at 9:00 pm.
To register, go to [email protected]
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