Development of the Arcadia Downtown Business Association

By Mary E. Dougherty

Members of the Downtown Business Association are excited about improving the Huntington Drive & First Avenue Area. Residents desire a walkable area of restaurants and interesting shops. I encourage the businesses to adopt a unique name that defines their area.

The City provided a parking study of the area and is hiring a consultant to help the area determine how best to form and implement a Property-Based Improvement District. A PBID is a mechanism for a property and business owner collaborative. It is a partnership between the public and private sector organized for the improvement of a specific commercial area. The property owners determine the level of services and improvements necessary to fit the needs of the commercial area, and funds are raised through a special assessment on real property within a specific geographic area to fund those desired services.

Community residents told us on the General Plan Advisory Committee that they wanted a walkable area with restaurants, gift shops, art shops, boutiques and other retail that would promote an old-town or village-type atmosphere + a place to grab a bite to eat or to leisurely dine and stroll, surrounded by interesting shops. A less hectic place than the Mall with a more community-based atmosphere seemed to be the desire of the residents.

I don't know where Arcadia's "downtown" is - is it Baldwin Avenue, the Mall, Huntington Drive, or First Avenue? For that reason, I have suggested that the business and property owners consider changing to a unique name for the area + it might be "Village at Arcadia," "Old Town Arcadia," or some other name that they select, and that defines the area included in their PBID.

I believe that among the early steps is development of a shared database of the available properties, and sharing that information with the City, the Chamber of Commerce, Realtors, The Downtown Business Association, and the business and property owners. In that way, anyone interested in locating a business in Arcadia could be provided information no matter which they contacted, and those various entities could actively seek appropriate businesses for the available spaces.

Last year's Independence Day parade was a terrific success. I think the community wants more of that kind of event, and with the business community's enthusiastic support we can reach that goal.

I believe the possibilities for developing a viable business community that has its own charm provides a wonderful opportunity for Arcadia to enhance its commercial base for the future!