The Boulevard Opportunity knocks on Artesia
Redondo Beach’s reinvestment in Artesia Boulevard includes new signs, seen here at the intersection of Vail Avenue. Photo
When Randolph and Francisca Stern opened up Dance 1, a studio with an emphasis on teaching ballet, they set up in a 1,200 square foot single-room space next to Snax Superburgers on Artesia Boulevard.
Within five years, they moved across the street to the former home of the Civic Light Opera. That, Randolph Stern said, wouldn’t have happened without the opportunities provided by Artesia’s relatively affordable commercial corridor.
“If it was high end, a Manhattan Beach Boulevard, we wouldn’t have gotten a start, and we wouldn’t have been able to grow like this,” Stern said.
Boulevard boosters believe that now is a time of opportunity along Artesia. The area has had a harsh reputation dating back decades, to when North Redondo was nicknamed “Felony Flats,” and violence and gang activity was frequent.
The gangs and violence are now gone, but the bruised reputation remains. Now, Redondo is trying to capitalize on pushes by City Hall to improve Artesia’s aesthetics.
Councilman John Gran, who represents the area, believes Artesia is on an upswing. He thinks the closure of Kurt Hardware and sale of its property by proprietors Leland and Tina Hyde is as much a loss for the neighborhood as it is an opportunity for the boulevard’s future.
“I’ve been to their house for dinner; they’re really good folks and they’re really good for Artesia Boulevard,” Gran said. “But this is part of the step-by-step progress that we’re seeing on Artesia Boulevard, and that’s going to be a very hotly contested property.”
Real estate agent Mo Sharfi, with Caskey and Caskey, is the broker marketing the Hydes’ property, which includes Kurt Hardware and Yanagi Japanese Bistro. The 20,000 square foot lot is listed at $4.1 million, and labeled as a “redevelopment opportunity.”
In an interview, Sharfi confirmed that there have been a number of people interested in the property, including two who would be owner-operators that would replace the existing buildings.
“I like both of them so far, but there are five or six more circling. Everyone is trying to figure out why it works for them,” Sharfi said.
That some of the interested parties would be owner-operators is a boon to Leland Hyde. A common complaint among business owners, he said, is absentee landlords, who are unresponsive to maintenance issues.
“It’s one of the things that’s been frustrating…it’s been difficult to get traction with the property owners because they simply aren’t here, and simply don’t care — or at least that’s the image they’re portraying,” Hyde said. “If you make some good improvements, businesses become more profitable, and that helps everybody.”
The city is trying to do its part. On Nov. 6, Redondo’s City Council approved the purchase of 120 new streetlight fixtures for more than $166,000 and is in the process of renovating median landscaping and installing new, blue signs. But the City is not yet attempting to become a landlord on Artesia, as it did when purchasing leaseholds along the waterfront.
“Have we kicked the idea around? Yes. But we haven’t moved on anything officially,” said Harbor and Economic Development Director Stephen Proud. He did note that the city has connected with brokers to potentially “be a matchmaker” between open properties and potential buyers.
But the buyers and businesses are there, Sharfi said. Commercial rents along the boulevard have climbed to $3 per square foot, similar to those found in South Redondo Beach. Businesses are moving in as well, including a natural food market near Vail Avenue and Artesia Boulevard that’s likely to open by the end of the year.
But while business owners like Stern are proud of the area’s growth, concern lingers.
“I have a great appreciation for Artesia,” Stern said. “I don’t want us to be Manhattan Beach. There’s a Manhattan Beach already; we should have our own character and our own personality.”