Sixth Street in downtown San Pedro was, at one time, as much a hub for entertainment as any in Los Angeles. Longshoremen from the Port of Los Angeles came in large numbers to attend shows and drink at the local pubs. The arts thrived, and businesses flourished.
But as the years went along, the boom of large chain stores left the main drag through downtown San Pedro a collage of empty storefronts and bars. The narrative is not unlike that of many towns across the country.
The two brand new high rise apartment complexes within walking distance of Sixth Street, however, tell a different story. They point to a community’s belief that downtown San Pedro can once again be as bustling as it was in its prime.
Where some might have seen risk, local business owners in San Pedro saw opportunity and recently have started working more closely to make San Pedro more than a place to drive through to get to the port.
The most important change came in 2008, when the merchants of the downtown area decided to switch from a merchant-based business improvement district to a property based improvement district, called a PBID. Under the new system, all businesses within a geographic boundary are required to pay a fee in order to do business, and that money is then managed by the San Pedro PBID.
According to Stephen Robbins, executive director of the PBID, that decision boosted the budget from $40,000 to $1 million per year. The bulk of that money has been dedicated to making downtown safer than it used to be.
“Public safety is the number one priority,” he said. “Crime was significantly higher before the PBID. Downtown was also filthy.”
These efforts have paid off, as the amount crimes within the PBID were seven times lower than the crimes within a one mile radius in 2013.
Bars and restaurants are booming as a result of the increased foot traffic, which Robbins says is the first step in the plan. He hopes that the success of the restaurants will be followed by a better environment for retail stores.
“There are 55 ways to buy a shirt,” he said. “But you can’t buy a beer online.”
James Brown, owner of the San Pedro Brewing Company, is one of the more involved and vocal merchants. He made brewing beer his business after he started bartending in his twenties in Redondo Beach. As he learned more about the process, he developed his own equipment systems for brewing and began selling them all over the world.
One of those systems found its way to San Pedro in 1998 and has been churning out award-winning batches ever since.
Brown says the recent improvements have given San Pedro a bigger chunk of the tourists who visit the area while on cruises. In particular, the free trolley that runs from the port area to downtown has made his bar even more accessible.
“The perception ten years ago was that when a ship came to town, the boat operator would say, "Don’t go to San Pedro. Go to Long Beach because it’s dangerous,” he said. “But we’re starting to overcome that.”
After 15 years on Sixth Street, Brown’s business has grown enough that he is expanding his brewing operation over a block to Seventh Street, where he will be able to brew and distribute his product on his own for the first time. The new facility is planned to open next year and will also be a tasting room for visitors to sample his latest beers.
With the brewery only being a block away, Brown is hoping for a steady stream of foot traffic between the two.
There’s never been a shortage of bars in San Pedro, and it was in one of those bars that Phil Buscemi realized something was missing in downtown: a late-night pizza place.
“It was a very spontaneous decision that I made to open up here,” Buscemi, who noticed a storefront for sale, said. “I called them, went the next day, signed the lease, and five or six months later I’m in business.”
Buscemi says it’s so far, so good for his pizza and sub shop. He also says there’s an added reward of being a part of a group of businesses working together to grow in their hometown.
“I made money here, and I might as well put my money back to Pedro,” he said “I’ve got faith in the community, and if we could somehow join forces with the other businesses around here, that’d be golden.”
While Philly B’s was going up, Brown introduced himself to Buscemi and welcomed him to the business community. Having recently completed all the paperwork for his brewery expansion, he offered his help to Buscemi, who says Brown isn’t the only one who’s been helpful.
“Everybody in this area is so eager to help one another succeed in business,” he said. “We all want to help each other. We want to be a part of the rebuilding of downtown San Pedro.”