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Making space for the arts benefits community
During 2010, Pacifica, California (population 39,000; Steve Rhodes, city manager), formed an economic development committee (EDC) consisting of the city manager, two councilmembers, and representatives from the Chamber of Commerce and local businesses. This committee addresses economic issues the city has faced over the past few years as a result of the Great Recession.
Numerous projects have been undertaken, including but not limited to branding, location maps, business retention and attraction, building and planning process improvement, organizing of merchants associations, and cooperation with such entitles as the Small Business Administration.
One of the shopping centers in Pacifica, called Eureka Square, has suffered the most with a vacancy rate of more than 50 percent. An EDC member had visited a storefront art gallery during 2008 while visiting the city of Santa Rosa, California. The Santa Rosa Redevelopment Agency sponsored the Phantom Window Gallery project (http://ci.santa-rosa.ca.us/ departments/recreationandparks/programs/artsandculture/artsdistrict/Pages/ PhantomGallery.aspx) as a way to convert vacant storefronts into temporary art galleries. EDC's idea was to do something similar at Eureka Square or at any of the city's vacant spots.
Pivotal Progress
With no possible funding available from the city, EDC looked inward to figure out how a similar program could be established and temporarily housed in one of the vacant storefronts. One EDC member - an independent grocer and owner of Oceana Market in the Eureka Square...