Jason Kim of Coldwell Banker tells angelenic that Korean grocer H Mart is lined up to replace Mitsuwa Marketplace, a 40,000 square-foot Japanese grocery that’s something of an anchor for Little Tokyo. Though the deal has not been finalized, Kim explains negotiations are in advanced stages and the switch could happen as early as next year.Sounds pretty final to me. This is really beginning to get uncomfortable, and the chances that the owners are open to talking to the community are getting slim. Not cool.
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8 comments:
oh wow, I'm glad I stumbled onto your site. Glad you blog about Jtown. Someone needed to.
This was my two-cents on the Mitsuwa being sold: http://mikeyhateseverything.blogspot.com/2008/06/little-tokyos-mitsuwa-market-mall-sold.html
Mitsuwa is a busy grocery store, especially on weekends. I understand business is business, but this doesn't make sense.
Mitsuwa is completely dead every time I go in there. Come to think of it, the entire mall is like a ghost town, even on the weekends. I think this will be a good thing because the mall is seriously dead considering what great potential it has. Plus, have you guys been to a Korean market? It's way cheaper than Mitsuwa or any of the other Japanese markets. This is certainly a plus for all the residents who need to by fresh produce and fruit.
That's missing the point, anon. I wouldn't dispute that the traffic in the mall can at times be pitiful. But as a show of courtesy, the new owners (who still haven't made their identities public) should sit down with people in the community and have a conversation about the shopping center's past, current, and future impact on Little Tokyo. By the way, they've been pretty tight-lipped with the current tenants too, who really should be among the first to know what the new owners' game plan is.
I just came from Little Tokyo as I speak. It's a ghost town. I don't think shops that sell funky shoes from the 80's for several hundred dollars make business sense. I highly doubt people are buying these like hotcakes, not even tourists. I don't think it's a good idea to replace Mitsuwa with a Korean market, and I'm Korean by the way. If a Korean market or more Korean restaurants make their way into J-town, then J-town will lose its identity. And the Japanese businesses and people will "white-flight" it out of there. I was talking to my friend about it, who's 3rd-gen JA, and he's jaded about it. Little Tokyo needs to revitalize itself on the social scene. I don't even think J-pop can bring life back into Little Tokyo.
I just found out about Mitsuwa mall being sold, to Korean firm.
How did i find out? I was researching the purchase of a Zojirushi rice cooker as a gift and was purposefully going to buy it at a store like Mitsuwa or Marukai, Especially because the Mitsuwa mall seemed to need the business. I could find it online for less but I'd gladly go miles out of my way and pay more to show that Mitsuwa is appreciated buy buying it there. Looks like its too late. I'm kind of sad about this.
Prevailing rumor inside the mall... let me stress I haven't heard for sure... is that the Mitsuwa has been given their six month walking notice as is laid out in their lease.
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