finance | economic impact

Giving business a boost
Local retailers prepare for influx ofvisitors

By MATT WRYE

THINGS are about to get busier for shops, hotels and restaurants along Fourth Street, Haven Avenue and Milliken Avenue.

When the $150 million Citizens Business Bank Arena opens this month, hundreds of thousands of concert-goers and sports fans are expected to swarm the streets surrounding it every year.

And that means there’s a lot of money to be made.

Local retailers will rely on the 125 yearly events destined for the venue, each slated to bring anywhere from 7,000 to 11,000 people, depending on the event. The Ontario Reign minor-league hockey team will play 36 games there.

Hotels are rising in every direction because of the Arena’s proximity to L.A./Ontario International Airport and corporate offices. Aloft and Hotel Indigo recently opened their doors, adding boutique and trendy flair to the competition that’s been here for years.

Scott Megna, general manager of Hotel Indigo, wasn’t in charge of picking his hotel’s location, but he’s sure the arena’s presence played a huge role in persuading parent company InterContinental Hotels Group to build here.

"It was another feather in the cap to cement the deal," Megna said. "Any time you can bring a massive amount of people to an area, it’s going to benefit retailers, hotels and other businesses.

You’ve now got 10,000 people coming to the area for an event, and they weren’t coming before." Nearby businesses stand to gain from an influx of consumers coming to the area: T-Mobile, Sam’s Club, Kohls, Golfsmith, In-N-Out Burger, BJ’s Restaurant Brewhouse, Olive Garden Italian Restaurant and many, many more.

Sean Lim, owner of Boston’s — a sports bar and pizza place on Fourth Street — is hoping to capture more than just sports fans. He’s promoting his restaurant as the premier place to party for Reign team members after a big game.

Sales over the past couple months have dropped 10 percent, he said, but with new business on the horizon, he’s thinking about hiring more employees.

"With the Arena, I think we can really bounce back," Lim said. "I think it’s going to bring us a lot of business." Business owners are giving Ciriaco Pinedo an earful of less-than-stellar news lately. The chairman of the Ontario Chamber of Commerce’s board of directors says sales went soft for several retailers as the economy downshifted into lower gear. But with the Arena coming online, they’re staying positive.

"The majority of comments I’m hearing is that it’s a great opportunity," he said. "A lot of us have long felt that we shouldn’t have to leave the Inland Empire for quality entertainment and sports." An even bigger boon for local businesses is that AEG will manage and attract entertainment to the arena. The Anschutz Company subsidiary is known for securing dates with big-selling acts, which might be key to maxing out the venue’s capacity and retailers’ revenue.

Pinedo isn’t sure if retailers will need to hire more employees to keep pace with business, but "that’s the logical guess," he said.

"These are tough times," Pinedo added. "But the reality is, our business owners are entrepreneurs, and part of that entrepreneurial spirit is to not give up. It’s that resolve to succeed that’s helping them weather the storm, and we’re hoping the arena helps.

"It’s a win-win situation because everyone can, should and will benefit from this."