City reports more than $270 million in economic output
Passing through the Mojave desert on State Route 14, where Hollywood often uses the landscape to depict alien planets, a driver might not expect to encounter nine leafy, tree-lined blocks in Lancaster, California. West Lancaster Boulevard, locally known as the BLVD, occupies part of what used to be Highway 14. Lancaster redeveloped the corridor as a mixed-use urban streetscape in 2010.
The city invested $11.5 million (£8.5 million), and its redevelopment agency planned and funded the redesign. Three lanes in the center of the former five-lane road were replaced by a series of tree-lined ramblas — Spanish for “avenue” and “watercourse,” because dry stream beds served as streets in early cities.
According to the city, the redevelopment generated more than $270 million in economic output and attracted $130 million in investment within four years of completion. The project created hundreds of jobs and prompted the building or renovation of hundreds of housing units. City Hall is one block south of the BLVD, which now contains 250 public and private enterprises, from banks and tattoo shops to restaurants, museums, a performing arts center and a public library.
John Elford, the manager of the Lancaster public library, was a reference librarian when construction began. He recalled that customers were angry about the disruption and that many complained about a major downtown thoroughfare being torn apart. “Suddenly it was all done, and they had the grand opening,” Elford said. “Everybody loved it and the complaints stopped.”
Elford said the more beautiful and walkable space encouraged people to get out of their cars and visit the library. People who had not visited before began wandering in, and their questions changed from requests for a particular title to questions about where the fiction and nonfiction sections were located. Visitors stayed to browse books or read quietly.
Elford said the library increasingly felt like a community space shared by residents. He said encounters with unhoused patrons had sometimes driven other visitors away in the past, but people came to know their unhoused neighbors and sometimes witnessed changes in them through contact with the library’s social workers. “They start to get to know that person without actually introducing themselves to them,” he said.
Property and business owners partnered with the city in 2013 to form the BLVD Association, a property-based improvement district in which businesses work together as caretakers and promoters, with funding from city taxes. In 2016, the association launched an ambassador program that hired representatives to walk the boulevard and assist visitors and businesses. Brian Morris Jr, who had worked as an ambassador for six months, said he had seen occasional begging and break-ins, but not enough to keep the area from feeling safe and livable.
Nicole Stevens runs Pretty Little Poppy Marketplace, a business selling wares from local vendors. Stevens, a Lancaster resident since 1993, said the reimagining brought small businesses and families together. “I’ve enjoyed being able to bring my boy down here.” Alex Arreola, a cashier and marketer at the Sassy Bird restaurant, said walking around the district helped him become friends with residents and business owners. “A lot of cities don’t have this walkable spot,” Arreola said. “It’s a big benefit, the best place in Lancaster right now.”
Lancaster opened a museum on the boulevard in 2012 to house exhibits and education highlighting the history, art and culture of California’s Antelope Valley. Its art program manager, Kim Calderwood, grew up in California City, about 40 miles from Lancaster. The still-open Burns Pharmacy was the only place on Lancaster Boulevard she recalled visiting with her family as a child. Calderwood said she welcomed the added foliage and the businesses and restaurants that drew a younger clientele.
Calderwood said people commonly discovered the museum while wandering the BLVD, including Lancaster residents who had not realized the museum was there. Visitors would say they had been wondering what the place was and that they did not know Lancaster had a museum, she said.
Nanette Rushing owns Nantiquez Vintage Flair, where she sells an Oscar de la Renta dress, rhinestone jewelry and a fringed buckskin mountain suit. Rushing has staged estate sales and sold pieces she collected in stores belonging to other people. She said the street shapes what people seek there. “This street dictates a lot of things, from food to music to art,” she said. “It’s kind of a melting pot, and we can always have more of that up here. I’m glad to be a part of it.”
At sunset, Lancaster resident Frazier Farrell walked past a farmer’s market on one of the ramblas, where a booth selling cemetery plots stood between dried fruit and nuts and a large display of fresh produce. Farrell said the BLVD was popular with younger residents, who could move among bars, a theater, restaurants and stand-up comedy. The museum hosted an open-mic night and figure-drawing classes. Farrell had been a student and model and said he often met friends there while making new ones among business owners.
Calderwood said the main complaint she heard was the district’s slow speed limits. “I’m definitely biased towards this sort of city planning,” she said. “It’s just not something that we get out here, or pretty much any other place I’ve lived.”