LOS ANGELES—In Los Angeles, revitalization is certainly in vogue —from Downtown Los Angeles to Hollywood. Among the bounty of success stories in Los Angeles, El Segundo is one of the most impressive. The former aerospace market has become a haven for creative office users, and has strong development activity, demand and rental rate growth. Now, the city is looking to expand in other sectors, like retail, hotel and multifamily. To find out more, we sat down with Barbara Voss, the economic development manager at the City of El Segundo to hear about the city's growth strategy.

GlobeSt.com: Tell me about your redevelopment strategy in El Segundo.

Barbara Voss: A launch pad for the next generation of innovators and entrepreneurs, El Segundo is a haven for forward-thinking companies both large and small. To spread the word, the city launched a public outreach program to enhance local business attraction. The city launched the marketing platform, “Where Big Ideas Take Off,” in late summer 2014, hosting several high-profile events to attract the attention of brokers and prospective tenants. The El Segundo Economic Development Advisory Council (EDAC) was created and serves as a forum for effective collaboration to identify responsible development strategies and provide support and guidance to City staff and local leadership on business attraction and retention. This prestigious group of business leaders includes representatives from a wide array of industries.

GlobeSt.com: What have you achieved so far?

Voss: As a part of the city's, “Where Big Ideas Take Off,” campaign, El Segundo launched an integrated “100 @ 100” initiative with the goal of attracting at least 100 new businesses to El Segundo by the year 2017, the 100th Anniversary of the city. The city surpassed its “100 @ 100” goal, welcoming 117 new businesses by the Centennial Anniversary, January 18, 2017. We created the Economic Development Annual Business Recognition Event, called Champions of Business Celebration in 2016. More than 225 guests attended the Champions of Business Celebration hosted by the city and EDAC on September 29th, 2016. The celebration recognized Richard Lundquist, Chevron, and Kite Pharma for their contributions to the economic growth and success of the city. The event was emceed by LA County Supervisor Don Knabe and featured a keynote address from Kevin Demoff, LA Rams' COO and VP of Football Operations. The event highlighted the many positive attributes of the city and generated significant interest in El Segundo from the South Bay region and beyond. The next Champions of Business Celebration will be held in September 2017.

El Segundo has won the prestigious Eddy Award for Most Business-Friendly City in Los Angeles County two times. The city was the inaugural winner in 2006 and then had to wait five years before it could apply again. It was then a finalist each of the previous three years before garnering the 2015 Eddy. Commercial developers continue to select El Segundo as the ideal spot for exciting new projects. Several new creative office campuses and key expansions are currently in the works, with more on the way.

GlobeSt.com: Office seems to have been the focus in this market. Is there activity in other sectors as well, like retail and multifamily?

Voss: We have seen increased activity in the retail sectors over the last two years with the opening of the Point in August 2015, a lifestyle center with a dynamic plaza and a blend of unique shops and restaurants, including Mendocino Farms, True Food Kitchen, Superba Food + Bread and North Italia. In Downtown El Segundo, new businesses include Sausal, Kagura, Brewport Tap House, and Two Guns Espresso. There are also six new restaurants on Rosecrans will add to the many dining options there. On the multifamily side, a residential development is underway in El Segundo consisting of a total of 58 residential units, including, single-family homes, and multi-family condominium units dispersed among six, 4-story buildings along Imperial Avenue.

GlobeSt.com: What is your outlook going forward?

Voss: In the office sector, we have targeted key industries that we want to attract to El Segundo to continue to strengthen and diversify our economy. Those industries include bioscience, technology, creative media and professional services. We are also working to bring our vacancy level down to single digits; it is currently 11.4%. In other sectors, we want to build upon the momentum in downtown and continue to add unique shops and restaurants. We are looking to increase hotel occupancy through a comprehensive destination-marketing program, and to retain and support our existing businesses, particularly our aerospace and defense companies.

GlobeSt.com: Tell me about your redevelopment strategy in El Segundo.

GlobeSt.com: What have you achieved so far?

GlobeSt.com: Office seems to have been the focus in this market. Is there activity in other sectors as well, like retail and multifamily?

GlobeSt.com: What is your outlook going forward?

Instant Insights /

Inside El Segundo's Campaign to Drive Growth

Related Stories

Recommended For You