Inglewood : Jewelry Mart Approved

The Inglewood Redevelopment Agency has approved the $1.7-million sale of the vacant Boston Store building for conversion into a jewelry mart modeled after jewelry marts near Pershing Square in downtown Los Angeles.

Korean investors Kee Dok Kwon and Kyoung Bok Kwon told the Redevelopment Agency, which consists of the five City Council members, that they will spend about $500,000 renovating the two-story, 44,850-square-foot building. The site has been vacant since the store’s lease expired in January. The investors envision renting out the entire ground floor to jewelry merchants.

Redevelopment officials called the sale an important step in the revitalization of Inglewood’s downtown business district. The market could provide up to $150,000 in annual sales taxes once it begins operating in the spring of next year, officials said.