Earlier this month, Mayor Karen Bass and multidisciplinary artist Charlie Alston stood in a Main Street storefront that sat vacant for a decade and announced that Alston would open a new art gallery in the space, part of LA's newly launched Vacant to Vibrant program.

Based on a successful San Francisco program of the same name, the Downtown pilot launched with $500K from a community development block grant. It's unclear how many storefronts will eventually open in Downtown with the funds, but the city is already exploring what it would take to take the program citywide.

Across Los Angeles, the retail vacancy rate in the third quarter rose 10 basis points to 5.7%, according to Kidder Mathews. But street-level retail is often left out of market reports, making it difficult to pin a specific vacancy number on the property type. Independent retailers that tend to occupy smaller street-level spaces struggled during the pandemic, and many haven't been able to make a comeback.

That could change with the implementation of the new program.

"Even if it's a temporary tenant, that space kind of lights the fuse for the next real, longer-term tenant to come in," said Kathleen Rawson, executive director of The Hollywood Partnership, a collection of property owners and business owners who work around shared goals and fund things like extra security and street cleanup crews.

In San Francisco, Vacant to Vibrant has been implemented in 18 storefronts, with 11 of the businesses transitioning into permanent commercial leases, according to a motion from Los Angeles City Council Members John Lee and Hugo Soto-Martínez. This stat was held up as proof that pop-up businesses can turn into long-term occupants.

Details are still being hammered out for the Downtown program, though the pilot location was secured by helping cover startup and leasing costs, according to a release about the program from Bass' office. In San Francisco's program, participating businesses receive free business counseling, including help securing permits, and also pay a discounted rental rate.

One of the goals of the Downtown pilot was to drive new foot traffic to commercial corridors, according to the release.

Hollywood doesn't have a foot traffic problem, Rawson said. The issue isn't getting people to come to Hollywood, it's getting them to linger.

"We have very few options for people outside of our main hubs, which are Hollywood and Highland and Hollywood and Vine," Rawson said.

Every neighborhood has its own challenges, and Rawson said a successful version of Vacant to Vibrant in LA would acknowledge that and plan for it. In Hollywood, for example, a number of historic buildings may need significant tenant improvements before they can be move-in ready for a small business, even on a temporary basis, Rawson said.

"If there are funds available that we can use to make those things happen or to create a better facade environment for some of these new potential tenants, it's a very exciting opportunity," she said.

Rawson would also like to see some of the funds for a program go to a dedicated broker that could not only connect landlords and businesses that apply to the program but also be proactive, seeking out owners and making the case for participating in the program and putting the effort into having a shorter-term tenant in their space. Brokers normally work by receiving commissions on leases, and temporary deals can sometimes seem like a lot of work for not a lot of payoff.

But the most critical element to the success of any program seeking to help small businesses will be a true commitment on the part of the city.

"The reality is that whoever runs these programs is going to have to hustle and talk to property owners, going to have to hustle and talk to potential tenants," Rawson said. "It's not going to just fall in their laps."