The annual carnival is scheduled to take place on Olympic Boulevard in Koreatown, Los Angeles, sparking complaints from businesses near the site.
The event, organized by the OBA Foundation, is a fundraiser for the Los Angeles Police Department’s (LAPD) Olympic Community Police Station. The event will take place Friday (November 3) through Sunday (November 5) from Hoover Street to Vermont Avenue on Olympic Boulevard.
Business owners are concerned that traffic will be blocked during this time, which could cause customers to not come through their doors.
The Olympic Community Police Station said it would consider moving the event to a different location in the future after receiving complaints from nearby business owners whose businesses were impacted by last fall’s and this spring’s events, which were held on Vermont Avenue between Pico and Olympic Boulevard. The new location, however, does not change the fact that it blocks the highly trafficked Olympic and Vermont streets, rendering the complaints by business owners meaningless.
While the event is scheduled for three days, Friday through Sunday, the installation of the equipment begins on Wednesday, effectively disrupting business for nearly five days, business owners said.
Ken Kim, owner of the Chinese restaurant New Mandarin Garden, said, “We found out about the roadblock when an employee accidentally found a flyer. The police station did not ask for our permission or inform us in advance.”
“They promised to move the location, but what’s the point if they block Olympic/Vermont anyway,” he said. “Every time we have a carnival, we lose half of our revenues,” he added, emphasizing, “For small businesses like ours, these events are really damaging.”
Angela Kim of ‘Umma Kitchen,’ a side dish store, said, “Every time we have a carnival, our sales drop by two-thirds. I’m afraid it will be the same this time. I’ve never seen any Korean Americans going to the carnival. I don’t know why they are organizing an event in Koreatown that doesn’t benefit the Korean community at all.”
In response, an OBA official said, “I personally opposed the idea of blocking Olympic Boulevard, but the police station said they sought permission from nearby businesses and approved it in early September.”
“I think they moved it to Olympic Boulevard because there were a lot of complaints when it was held on Vermont Avenue. It’s worth checking to see which businesses’ permission was sought in this process.”
BY SUAH JANG, JUNHAN PARK [jang.suah@koreadaily.com]
