With a new year beginning, the first Business Watch Meeting of 2003 will take place Thursday, Jan. 16 at noon. The meetings are held monthly at the Hollywood Community Room at 6501 Fountain. The Business Watch is a collaborative effort between the Hollywood Media District and the LAPD Hollywood Division.
"The most important thing is that it brings together the businesses in the Santa Monica corridor to work on quality of life issues and crime problems in the area," Vincent Aguirre, LAPD Senior Lead Officer, said.
The topic of January's meeting will be the Homeless. Sam Colquitt from PATH (People Assisting The Homeless) will be the guest speaker. He will discuss the cold weather shelter and other issues regarding the homeless here in Hollywood.
With many improvements and changes shaping the new face of Hollywood, our Business Improvement District is being recognized as one of the leaders of progress in the area. A recent article in the Los Angeles Business Journal (Dec. 16, 2002) highlighted the BID and the accomplishments that have been made, including streetscape improvements and lower crime rates.
Mary Lou Dudas, Executive Director of the BID, was quoted as saying "We call Santa Monica Boulevard our spine, and we want to really transform it into a pedestrian corridor rather than a harsh urban corridor, which is what it is now."
Jeff Luster, president of Major Properties, commended the property owners in the area by saying, "It won't happen right away but I think in the next 10 years you're really going to see a change along Santa Monica... The property owners there are a cohesive group and they are trying to improve the area."
In addition to the BID, another project that was credited with producing a more positive environment in the area is the 250,000-square-foot West Hollywood Gateway project, funded by J.H. Snyder Co. The $80 million retail project will contain Target and Best Buy stores, as well as other national retailers.
The article disclosed that while rents for creative office space on Santa Monica are down from recent years, the vacancy rates are a respectable 10-15 percent, lower than the Hollywood office market as a whole.
The BID will continue to make it's identity known as the projects planned for this year will be highly visible, such as the medians going up on Highland Ave., and the streetscape improvements on Santa Monica Blvd.
Starting with the next issue of the Media Messenger, you will have the option of receiving your copy of the newsletter through e-mail or fax. This will reduce the amount of paper we use, as well as provide a convenient alternative to getting the latest information on the BID. Please contact Devin at 323-460-4770 if you are interested.
As always, the Messenger can also be accessed online at the Media District's Web Site, www.hmdbid.org along with many other resources of interest to stakeholders.
1. Transportation - a. Bureau of Street Services has requested a copy of our boundaries to further consider our request to discontinue cleaning within the BID in favor of Hollywood Beautification Team cleaning before or after business hours. No progress to report on diagonal parking or one-way streets.
2. Highland Gateway - EHollywood Beautification will be going door to door for approval of tree locations in front of businesses on Highland Avenue from Melrose to Waring. Once the approvals are obtained, planting will begin. The median is ready for plan check and pulling the permit.
4. Prostitution & Drug Dealing - Advanced Tech Security reports that there is heavy Los Angeles Police Department and Sheriff's presence in the BID boundaries. They are focusing on moving homeless from doorways and on private property. Currently the HMD has a Request for Proposal on a new security contract that will use both unarmed ambassadors and armed officers. The success of the 3 month armed pilot program convinced the Board of Directors that a hybrid security team would be the most effective.
5. Media District Sign Overlay - No progress to report.
Public safety, tourism, and city business tax reform are among the topics that will be discussed at the eighth annual "State of Hollywood" luncheon. The event will take place on Wednesday, Jan. 22 at noon in the Renaissance Hollywood Hotel, 1755 N. Highland.
Eric Garcetti, Los Angeles City Councilmember, will be the keynote speaker at the luncheon, which is sponsored by the Legislative Action Committee of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce.
The event is open to the public. Admission is $60 per person. To place a reservation, or for more information, please call the Chamber at 323-469-8311.
At its December meeting, the Board of Directors accepted the Slate of Officers for the 2003/04 Hollywood Media District Board of Directors. The officers are as follows: President - Jeff Anthony, Iron Mountain Film and Sound; Vice President - Tim Mahoney, Hollywood Center Studios; Treasurer - Don Robertson, Honda of Hollywood; and Secretary - Eliza Thorne, Seward Film Vaults.