National retailers give Compton a boost
By Paloma Esquivel, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
March 31, 2008
For years Compton has struggled against a lousy reputation. Its name has been invoked by rappers as a euphemism for violence, rebellion and poverty. “It’s the home of the jackers and the crack. (Compton!) Yeah, that’s the name of my hometown,” sang the rapper The Game.
But these days, Compton is starting to look almost suburban.
Since last year, Staples, Target, Best Buy and Starbucks, among other national retail chains, have opened stores in the city. Although they have yet to generate more than a few thousand dollars in sales tax, the stores mean more than revenue or convenience to many city residents.
“I don’t like the idea of having to go outside of this community to spend my money,” said Kevin Love, 48, as he passed a recent lunch hour shopping at Best Buy at the Gateway Towne Center, which opened late last year. Attracting retailers has been a tough battle for Compton, since the merchants required constant reassurance of safety and success from city leaders — and one of the most advanced retail surveillance systems in the country.
Not only does the Gateway Towne Center, which opened in October, have the type of security cameras found at any shopping center, but the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department installed its own video cameras, license-plate scanning cameras and cameras that respond to the sound of gunshots.
Live feeds from the cameras are monitored on big-screen televisions in a small room inside the sheriff’s Compton station on Willowbrook Avenue. Four deputies patrol the center full time, and a sheriff’s substation is set to open next to Daniel’s Jewelers.
“My No. 1 priority is security,” Mayor Eric Perrodin said. “I’m not going to let anyone disrupt the opportunities we’ve been given when these retailers came to Compton.” (more…)
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