?First-Time Study Shows South Los Angeles Area Has Potential, But Requires NonTraditional Development Strategies?

Los Angeles, CA (ContentDesk) June 3, 2004--A first-time study prepared by the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC) shows the economy of the South Los Angeles Area is not only complicated, but has many challenges. It was produced for the "Crenshaw Summit," which scheduled to take place this Saturday, June 5, 2004 and is sponsored by the Crenshaw Chamber of Commerce.The South Los Angeles Area has significant potential, but enhancing it will take hard work and the implementation of some nontraditional economic development strategies," said Chief Economist and
Senior Vice President Jack Kyser, LAEDC. The South Los Angeles Area is bounded by the Santa Monica Freeway on the north, the city of Inglewood and some County unincorporated areas on the west, the Century Freeway on the south, and the cities of Vernon, Huntington Park and South Gate on the east.
The Area's 2000 population was 702,288, with Latinos accounting for the majority ? 55.9 percent, while African Americans accounted for 38.9 percent.
The Area is a fairly stable community, with 54.0 percent of the residents living in the same house as in 1995.

Since the 2000 Census, the Area has added at lest 18,000 residents. "Employment in the area has been fairly stable since 1991," noted Kyser.
According to data from the California Employment Development Department, the high was recorded in 1991 when there were 96,366 people at work in the area.
A low of 82,717 jobs was reached in 1993, at the depth of the early 1990's recession/economic restructuring and in the aftermath of the 1992 civil unrest.
By 2003, the area's job count had climbed back to 94,781.

"With the rebounding national, state and county economies in 2004, the South Los Angeles Area should see employment growth of 1,329 jobs during the year," said Kyser.Kyser noted that calculating the area's share of Los Angeles County's total employment provides an interesting insight.
Like employment itself, this share has been fairly stable since 1991.
"This tells us that South Los Angeles is mainly a residential area rather than a major employment hub in Los Angeles County."???????????????The LAEDC study also revealed that the largest industry in the area was apparel/textiles manufacturing with 12,169 workers.
Two other manufacturing industries also loomed large, food products manufacturing with 3,189 jobs, and furniture with 2,648 workers.Nonresidential real estate vacancy rates for the South Los Angeles Area, were also surprising.
Grubb & Ellis provided some information especially for the LAEDC study, and the vacancy rate for office properties was 5.0 percent during the first quarter of 2004, while for industrial properties the rate as only 1.2 percent.

For comparison, Los Angeles County's office vacancy rate for the first quarter was 16.1 percent, while the industrial rate was 3.3 percent.
"This tells us that there is ?demand' for space in the area, but the supply situation is compounded by a lack of large blocks of developable land," added Kyser."All this plus other information tells us that the leaders of the South Los Angeles Area need to pursue a nontraditional economic development strategy," said Kyser.
Among the recommendations in the study were:?Given the Area's exposure to the apparel/textiles industry, its leaders need to become actively involved with this industry to positively affect future developments.?The same strategy should be followed with the furniture industry.
The South Los Angeles Area has an advantage here in that there is a "furniture manufacturing cluster" in the area, along with efforts to develop the "L.A. Design Center" at the intersection of Western and Slauson avenues.?The LAEDC study also pointed out that the South Los Angeles Area has been impacted by economic trends in adjacent areas.

A prime example is the Gateway region directly to the east, where there was a concentration of heavy manufacturing running along Alameda Street.
As these plants, including an auto assembly plant and a tire factory, disappeared, so did many good jobs in South Los Angeles.
Thus, leaders in South Los Angeles need to take a more global perspective on what is happening in adjacent areas that could cause job growth/loss in their area.?Since the South Los Angeles Area is "land poor", especially for large blocks, its leaders need to make sure that various proposals for redevelopment of such sites as "Lanzit" move along in an expeditious fashion.?The LAEDC study also suggested that leaders of the South Los Angeles Area consider establishing an economic development group for the area, driven by the private sector.? Finally, the study noted that continued attention has to be devoted to the "old reliables" for the South Los Angeles Area, lowering crime and improving schools."The South Los Angeles Area has significant potential, but developing it will take hard work, some unusual strategies, and a global perspective on how the area works with surrounding area in Los Angeles County," said Kyser.Editors: For an advanced copy of study, interviews and images contact: George Mc Quade or Aida Mayo at MAYO Communications at: 818.340.5300 or 818.618.9229 or e-mail protected from spam bots.All LAEDC studies are posted at www.laedc.org.


From Desk To Dust

Isn't it extremely unnerving to see your exquisite wooden furniture falling to bits due to an insect infestation? Wood boring beetles and other such insects can cause widespread damage to your furniture literally reducing it to dust. It is important to keep inspecting the pieces of furniture on a regular basis to catch the infestation in its initial stage before way too much damage has been done. Also, there are some preventive measures that should be undertaken.
Below is an account of what you can do to protect your precious Amish furniture and other wooden furniture.

Inspection: The first step to management is deciding if there is an active infestation, or if you are seeing old damage. In an active infestation look for borings accumulating in piles near holes or on the floor below, beetles crawling on the wood, or you may hear a ticking sound that is made by some larvae.

If there is no active infestation,...

From Desk To Dust
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Garden Furniture: A Natural Extension of the Home

Garden Furniture: A Natural Extension of the Home

In the past, the garden has traditionally been a separate entity, with wrought iron or plastic furniture dotting the landscape in no particular design pattern. Seen as simply a place to have a picnic or, perhaps, read a book on a nice day, attention wasn't given to the fact that the garden is a natural extension of the home.

Today, things have changed, and homeowners are now considering their garden area as simply another room that happens to flow into the outdoors. In fact, great care is often taken to extend the home environment into the garden, integrating the design of the furnishings and expression of the homeowner's personal style to create a comfortable retreat for those who choose to enjoy the benefits of nature.

Let's suppose, for instance, that the furnishings within the interior of your home reflect French styling. A natural way to extend that theme into the garden area is to utilize...

Garden Furniture: A Natural Extension of the Home
Childrens furniture > Garden Furniture: A Natural Extension of the Home

Company Notes Emerging Trend Toward Diversity in Living Room D?cor

Brooklyn, NY (ContentDesk) August 25, 2005 ? It's no surprise that Feldman's Furniture knows living rooms. After all, they've been providing America with living room furniture for more than thirty years. But recently, they've seen a new trend emerging ? a rising demand for greater diversity in living room furnishings."People want high-quality living room furniture that not only looks good, but also reflects their lifestyle and personality," says Feldman's president, Mr. Voynov. "That means furniture companies are going to have to carry a larger assortment of living room collections and individual pieces in order to meet the growing needs of their customers."Feldman Furniture has responded to the marketplace's demand for variety by providing the nation's largest selection of living room sets, sofas, love seats, chaises, chairs and other accessories in a wide variety of styles and upholsteries.

They currently stock inventory in excess of a million dollars, featuring brand names...

Company Notes Emerging Trend Toward Diversity in Living Room D?cor
Childrens furniture > Company Notes Emerging Trend Toward Diversity in Living Room D?cor

E-Commerce is Booming. Are You Benefiting?

Five years ago, people were surfing the web.Three years ago, people started to use the Internet to buyand sell goods. Two years ago, during the 1998 holiday season,over 1 million AOL members bought at least one item online.This gave us a small hint of how big online shopping might get.In 1999's holiday season, e-commerce exploded in all directions,taking its toll on traditional malls and shops. This year, evenstores like Kmart and Walmart are spending millions to promoteonline shopping, bringing more people than ever on board theshopping wave of the future.Although all of us can see what's happening, only a smallpercentage of the general population is actually capitalizingon the Internet shopping revolution. E-commerce is here tostay. How long will it be before the rest of us get on board?Why haven't we joined the revolution?For many of us, the answer to that question is that wesimply don't know where to start or what to do once we begin.Most of us probably think we need to have expertise...

E-Commerce is Booming. Are You Benefiting?
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How Can the Kids Help Around the House?

Copyright 2006 Karin Vibe Rheymer Stewart

When my husband was in college, a number of his fellow students were bringing their dirty laundry home, and Mom was coming once a month to clean their room. This wasn't because they were lazy, but they simply didn't know how to do the laundry or house cleaning!

Don't let your children become like those students... Apart from the fact that teaching your children house and other chores prepare them for life on their own, they're also chores that you don't need to do!
I know, I know, it takes time to teach them how to do it, and there will be quite a few times when you will need to finish the job behind them, but once they know, you will never need to do it again until they leave... And, at least until they reach eight or so, they will be proud to be entrusted with "big people" tasks.

So, what tasks can be safely delegated to your children? It depends on their age, but there are things they can do...

How Can the Kids Help Around the House?
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Teen Bedroom Furniture

Teen Bedroom Furniture forms an important part of the d?cor of the room for the teenager, as this room is where teens spend much of their time. So if you feel that your room leaves much to be desired in terms of style, then it's time to do some refurnishing.

A teen bedroom serves different purposes, as this is a place wherein he or she not only sleeps but also entertains friends, studies and relaxes. So the furniture should be bought keeping in mind the arrangement and storage space, according to the requirements of the teenagers. Since the bedroom is also the place where one studies, it is important to have a comfortable desk chair and a table to go along with it.

One of the key things that the furniture should have is storage space for CDs as well as books.

Teen Bedroom Furniture should reflect the attitude, personality and nature of the youth who owns it.
Teen Bedroom Furniture, apart from beds, includes tables, dressers, benches and futons...

Teen Bedroom Furniture
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