Living the LA Live

Filipinos are known to be ardent lovers of the good life. Whether it’s dining out, watching a basketball game at the Staples Center or a concert at the Los Angeles Convention Center or going on a long drive to explore the sights, Pinoys invest time, effort and money for leisure, thus giving the word gimmick a whole new meaning.

Pinoys have coined the word gimik—a contemporary colloquial term which encompasses every form of leisurely activity. It may seem a little hedonistic, but it is just our way of rewarding ourselves for all the hard work we put in to provide a better life for our loved ones. After all, we are also known for being industrious and hardworking.

The economic crisis may necessitate us to wisen up on our finances and slow down on our unnecessary spending, but as the altered saying goes, “All work and no play makes Juan a very dull boy.” The arrival of LA Live will definitely be welcomed with open arms by our kababayans here in Southern California, most especially by those who frequent the Staples Center for basketball games, concert enthusiasts and those who are always on the lookout for new eats and adventurous cuisine.

What’s even more advantageous about Pinoy culture is that we always come in droves for a gimik. A long table at a restaurant, rows of seats in a movie theatre or several lanes in a bowling alley are not uncommon sights for Filipinos having a night-out activity.

The inception of LA Live is definitely exciting news for the Filipino-American community. “Unfolding on 27 acres around Staples Center in South Park, LA Live this month will debut a nightclub, a museum, office space and five new restaurants. Five more restaurants, as well as an ESPN broadcast center and a 14-screen Regal Cinema are scheduled to open between January and November of next year. A 54-story $900 million Convention Center headquarters hotel with 224 condominiums, currently under construction, is scheduled to cap off the project in 2010,” said Anna Scott in an article for LA Downtown News.

And this does not only apply to Pinoys in Southern California. Filipinos back home will find more reason (other than Disneyland and Universal Studios) to visit the city of angels.

A silver lining

The country’s pecuniary gloom, officials at AEG are optimistic that LA Live will thrive in the weak economy.

LA Live Managing Director Lisa Herzlich had this to say in LA Downtown News: “It’s unusual to develop a project like this in an area that has an engine like Staples Center that generates so much traffic. We’ve got 4.3 million people that come to Staples each year, and they really don’t have any dining options before or after games and events. We’re not unaware of the economy, but we feel that there is less supply and more demand in Downtown.”

As a live music and event destination, LA Live has attracted major events like the Emmys, the American Idol live finale and the American Music Awards. The opening of Club Nokia in November has already afforded LA Live a full booking of scheduled concerts.

And with the steady stream of events and millions of visitors every year at Staples and the Convention Center, LA Live’s row of nightlife attractions will definitely be an after-event respite.

Other breathtaking amenities include the curiosity-piquing Grammy Museum, (which opened on December 6) and a cluster of prime accommodations at the Convention Center—An 878-room JW Marriott Hotel, a 123-room Ritz-Carlton Hotel and the Ritz-Carlton residences.

A sense of community

“In addition to capitalizing on large events and conventions, LA Live aims to become a community focal point,” Herzlich further said in LA Downtown News.

Aside from LA Live hopes that it will become a melting pot for Angelenos to come together. Downtown workers and students from USC and the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising will hopefully become the regular lunchtime crowd at LA Live.

Slow but steady

The lurching economy may set LA Live off to a shaky start, but Herzlich thinks that it is a long-term investment. “There will be short-term gains, there will be short-term bumps, but it’s a long-term investment. If you fast forward to when the hotel opens, hopefully the economy will turn around by then, and in the years after that this city’s going to thrive,” she said. (www.asianjournal.com)

(Published december 24, 2008 p.mdwk2 LAMIDWEEK)

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