Downtown Center BID & Brookings Institution Host Innovation Symposium in Downtown LA

Downtown Los Angeles’ emergence as a center of innovation and creativity takes another leap forward today with the launch of the Downtown Center BID’s ‘Innovate DTLA’ initiative, announced Carol Schatz, President & CEO of the Downtown Center Business Improvement District [DCBID]. Hosted at WeWork’s Gas Company Tower location, today’s symposium brings together the leading thinkers on innovation and placemaking, with the growing number of entrepreneurs, business incubators, accelerators, and investors that are increasingly calling Downtown LA home.

Kicking off the symposium was an engrossing dual keynote by Bruce Katz of The Brookings Institute and author of The Rise of Innovation Districts, and Fred Kent, founder of Project for Public Spaces, during which they illustrated that Downtown LA has all the necessary elements of a leading Innovation District. They cited a critical mass of innovation assets, as well as key anchor institutions such as the world-class research facilities of the University of Southern California, as being critical facilitators that will drive the growth of Downtown LA as a globally-acknowledged center for creativity, innovation and technology.

The keynote was followed by a panel discussion with downtown leaders moderated by Andy Altman of The Brookings Institute and focused on developing an innovation ecosystem and culture of creativity. The main goals of the Innovate DTLA initiative:

·       Promote downtown as a place of innovation and creativity

·       Nurture the existing innovation ecosystem

·       Attract more creative and technology companies, organizations and individuals to DTLA

According to Schatz, “With the incredible number of creative and tech firms making Downtown LA their home, we recognized the need to bring them together to establish key relationships and build a thriving environment of collaboration that will not only give Downtown an advantage over other submarkets in the city, but grow the city into a leading center of innovation.”

For more information on InnovateDTLA, contact Nick Griffin, Director of Economic Development at the DCBID, or visit the website at https://www.downtownla.com/about-us/programs-initiatives/innovate-dtla.

About Downtown Center Business Improvement District

ABOUT THE DOWNTOWN CENTER BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT (DCBID)
The Downtown Center Business Improvement District (DCBID) has been the catalyst in Downtown Los Angeles’ transformation into a vibrant 24/7 neighborhood. A coalition of nearly 1,700 property owners in the central business district, the DCBID members are united in their commitment to enhance the quality of life in Downtown Los Angeles. Bounded by the Harbor Freeway to the west, First Street to the north, Main and Hill streets to the east, and Olympic Boulevard to the south, the organization helps the 65-block central business district achieve its full potential as a great place to live, work, and play. For 20 years, the DCBID’s programs and initiatives have been the driving force behind the Downtown Los Angeles Renaissance.

Now universally recognized as one of the nation’s most dynamic urban centers, downtown Los Angeles has been heralded as ‘The Next Great American City’ by GQ Magazine; listed as number 5 in The New York Times’ ‘52 Places to Go in 2014’; and named ‘The Hottest Neighborhood to Know in LA Right Now’ by the New York Post. For more information, visit DowntownLA.com/about