The Miracle Mile is Back, Baby

In its latest issue, the Los Angeles Business Journal, which calls 5700 Wilshire home, highlights the frenzied activity the Miracle Mile’s seen in the past few years on the back of the office space boom in the area. The neighborhood had slowed down starting in the sixties, although it never fell on truly hard times. Still, thanks to giant mixed-use projects, like developer BRE’s derided asshat at 5600 Wilshire and Legacy Partners’s much better-liked 5550 Wilshire building(and in a few years, BRE’s giant Wilshire/La Brea project), the neighborhood is lately seeing a fresh influx of young residents and trendy burger places like The Counter (and Umami and Five Guys). Revamped offices spaces and comparatively low rents have attracted music and media companies (notably Oprah’s OWN) from Hollywood and Beverly Hills, while new hotels and luxury car dealerships are opening. Send a thank you note to Michael Govan, the director of LACMA, who’s helped double the museum’s attendance, extended the campus, helped attract a movie museum, and helped make the whole vicinity more desirable. Though some storefronts remain empty and certain retail is less than upscale (Ono Hawaiian BBQ, the Gold for Cash store, etc.), optimism is strong, especially since two subway stations, and maybe a trolley, are on their way.

Monday, January 23, 2012, by Neal Broverman www.LACurbed.com