CITIES BENEFIT FROM USING
THE ARTS AS AN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TOOL
Westwater, a 60-something urban cowboy and darling of the LA media, and a few other arts-minded entrepreneurs all landed within a few blocks on 5th and Main when the area was at its most drug-deluged and decrepit.
Westwater and others went about convincing landlords that they would get a large return on their long-term investment if they started cleaning up the area by offering studio, gallery and living space to artists for very low rent.
"The renowned Bert Green Fine Art gallery moved from West Hollywood to Downtown and soon there were five popular art galleries in the area of 5th and Main," Westwater said. "We kept clearing the drug dealers out and then we tackled Winston, a small street near 5th and Main so dangerous that people wouldn't cross a half block of it in the daylight."
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