Yesterday, Palm Restaurant made a formal announcement that the chain will open a new restaurant on the corner of 11th Street and Flower Street, having signed a lease for 13,500 sf in the Toy Center Building.

"This is a real opportunity," said Alfred L. Thimm, president of Palm Management Corp., who spoke at yesterday's press conference. "We've been studying Downtown for a year or two," he added, saying the company feels there is real potential in the area.

L.A. City Council member Mark Ridley-Thomas and L.A. City Council member-elect Jan Perry expressed their support for the LA Sports and Entertainment District, as they and other politicians, business leaders and sports executives gathered around caricatures specially created for the location. "This is a fantastic project," Perry said. "It has given new life to an area of the city that had flatlined before it arrived."