Reviving the Village
The long-standing effort to revive Westwood Village has produced uneven results despite its prime location and hundreds of millions of dollars in private and public investment.
The arrival of new restaurants and a much-needed supermarket are offset by the absence of high-profile retailers and stalled development projects. Merchants grumble about the lack of affordable and convenient public parking, while complaints about Westwood’s business improvement district have put the organization’s renewal process on hold. Developers and homeowner groups, meanwhile, continue to wrangle over proposed projects.
“It’s a challenge because there are so many players with so many disparate interests,” said Los Angeles City Council member Jack Weiss, who represents the area. “It’s very hard to get people on the same page to agree to the same vision.”
The lack of a cohesive vision has undermined the strengths of Westwood Village, which is surrounded by UCLA, some of the city’s most affluent neighborhoods and the high-rent office towers of Wilshire Boulevard, retail and urban planning experts say.
“The demographics around Westwood are phenomenal and UCLA is a great benefit,” said retail consultant Rob York. But, he said, “I don’t think there is any clear vision of what Westwood Village is or wants to be.”
Westwood Village has come a long way since it bottomed out in the early 1990s, when the recession and the emergence of new malls and other pedestrian-oriented hot spots siphoned away retailers and shoppers. Bursts of youth violence also tarnished the area’s image and kept older and more affluent customers away.
In the latter half of the decade, public and private money began to pour into Westwood. The city funded construction of a parking garage as well as street and sidewalk improvements along Broxton Avenue. The Westwood Village Business Improvement District was formed to help maintain cleanliness and attract businesses and shoppers to the area.
Experienced and well-funded developers such as Ira Smedra, Regent Properties and Madison Marquette unveiled ambitious plans to build theaters and stores. About 100 businesses, including several high-end restaurants, a boutique hotel and Westwood Village’s first supermarket in 25 years, have opened in recent years, cutting the retail vacancy rate to about 5%.
Though far smaller in size and scope than when it was first announced five years ago, the Regent Properties’ Westwood Marketplace--which includes a Whole Foods market--is finally taking shape on the west end of the village on a block between Broxton and Gayley avenues.
“Westwood has great demographics, great architecture and great demand,” said Doug Brown, managing partner of Regent Properties. “People want to be in Westwood.”
Despite these signs of progress, the pace of change has been far slower and more spotty than many observers had expected. The retail scene remains uneven, with some new stores reporting healthy sales while others have struggled or failed.
“It’s going in the right direction,” said Bob Walsh, executive director of the Westwood Village Business Improvement District. “Does that mean we are done? No, we have huge challenges before us.”
On Westwood’s eastern flank, Smedra abandoned his proposed $100-million project on Glendon Avenue after facing stiff opposition from residents and other village groups. The five-acre site remains mostly empty as a second developer, Casden Properties, seeks to build a mixed-use project featuring 350 apartments and ground-floor shops. The fate of that project remains to be decided as the developer, residents and public officials debate whether it exceeds city-mandated limits on density and height.
In the heart of the Village, Madison Marquette, a national retail development specialist, opened a Ralphs supermarket in the former Bullock’s department store space and leased the many storefronts it controls along Westwood Boulevard, the Village’s main drag. But the company concedes that the Village still needs a more dynamic retail scene.
“I’d still like to see more of a critical mass of retail--things that will create a reason to hang out in the Village,” said Robert A. Baker, leasing director for Madison Marquette.
While the Village’s retail vacancy rate has declined, Madison Marquette and other Westwood landlords have been criticized for failing to attract more high-end, fashion-oriented chains. Steve Sann, a Westwood neighborhood activist, was taken aback when Madison Marquette signed Office Depot to occupy space on Westwood Boulevard.
“You don’t find Office Depot on the Third Street Promenade or Montana Avenue,” Sann said. “Office Depot is great, but it’s a question of good urban planning. These landlords are making these very shortsighted deals.”
The owners of Tengu, a 3-year-old Asian fusion restaurant, say the addition of more high-end retailers as well as improved parking and districtwide promotion would help boost business during lunch and on weekend evenings.
“People don’t hang out here,” said general manager Guy Ravid. “They are not coming out here for the weekend to go shopping.
“I’m very optimistic,” he added. “I still love the Village. It’s such a beautiful, quaint neighborhood. I’m still hoping it will kick in, but with some more retail and parking.”
