Urban Land Institute releases official Smoky Hollow study [El Segundo]

Urban Land InstituteThe long-awaited Smoky Hollow area study was recently released by the Urban Land Institute, and after thousands of hours of investigation and discussions by a team of planning experts with a combined 245 years of economic development experience, the 28-page report’s findings can be boiled down to this: if El Segundo builds it, Silicon Beach will come.

The report is the product of the non-profit think tank’s Technical Assistance Panel (TAP) program, which in El Segundo took the form of a committee of professionals experienced in revitalization projects elsewhere, particularly in such places as Old Town Pasadena and Santa Monica.

The panel cautioned that obstacles exist in the Smoky Hollow district, such as dilapidated infrastructure, limited fiber optic capacity and a parking shortage. Yet its findings indicated it’s a place that might allow the area to become a magnet for “new creative” high-tech businesses. The report says Smoky Hollow is poised to “become the L.A. region’s next successful incubator zone”, akin to Santa Monica’s “Silicon Beach” or Culver City’s “Hayden Tract.”

“Indeed, many elements are in place for this transition to naturally and quickly evolve: The neighborhood’s stock of mid-Century buildings appeal to the tastes of these types of users,” the report says. “Its small parcels are perfect for start-ups. Its beach-close location is also ideal. The character of El Segundo – small town yet business-friendly – offers a positive environment for entrepreneurs. Even the industrial vibe of Smoky Hollow, epitomized by its name, can be a strong draw for creative types….In this way, the theme of its development destiny might be: let Smoky Hollow be Smoky Hollow.”

El Segundo economic development analyst Ted Shove said the report buttresses the belief that many city officials have carried for several years – that Smoky Hollow could become a new economic engine for the city.

“It’s a really good thing,” Shove said. “You have a group of people, city staff, that kind of believes this could be a success, and you have an independent third party come in that says exactly that, validating your thoughts. They make a presentation and lend value to the kind of thought process and direction you were hoping to go anyway.”

Shove said the report and its recommendations represent “a paradigm shift” of a sort, in terms of how to think about Smoky Hollow, the industrial district that is bordered to the south by the Chevron refinery, to the west by downtown El Segundo, to the east by Pacific Coast Highway and on the north by mixed-density residential neighborhoods.

The city is not wasting time in putting the report’s suggestions into action. Next month, city staff will present an implementation plan to the City Council that is likely to include infrastructure recommendations, financing options and a timeframe for moving forward with the area’s revitalization.

Shove said one thing that particularly stood out among the panel’s recommendations was how urgent the need is to improve fiber optic capacity in the area. He said the city has fiber optic lines and a development agreement with local data centers in place, so that ultimately a city-owned Internet Service Provider might be the surest way to meet businesses’ needs. Santa Monica, he noted, has successfully offered such a service.

“It provides that infrastructure where the private companies just aren’t going, whether it’s lack of density or it’s just lower on their priority list,” Shove said. “For Smoky Hollow area, it really allows the city to take a step forward to provide service to folks currently there and to prospective tenants – that could be a deal-breaker if internet infrastructure is not in position.”

The ULI report says that with such fixes, Smoky Hollow would be an easy sell in a high-tech market with a pent-up real estate demand that has quickly gotten expensive in Culver City and Santa Monica.

“As Smoky Hollow represents a lower-cost alternative to those areas, its popularity will spread quickly,” the report says. “One has only to imagine the communities of tech workers, ad agencies, architecture firms, etc. – all who are very connected through online forums – talking among themselves: ‘Have you hear about that place in El Segundo? It’s a great place for start-ups and it’s much cheaper and cooler than Santa Monica! It’s called Smoky Hollow.”

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