Father and creator of Miracle Mile is innovative A.W. Ross
STATUE OF MIRACLE MILE developer A.W. Ross was dedicated on March 16, 1964.
If you blink you’ll miss the bust of A.W. Ross at 5799 Wilshire Blvd., located in a grassy little triangle facing the stretch of boulevard he created, Miracle Mile. Without him, who knows what would have happened to Wilshire.
It was 1920. The heart of Los Angeles was Downtown. Streetcars were the primary form of transportation. The automobile was just coming into vogue. Wilshire was only paved for one-and-a-half miles west of Downtown to MacArthur Park and the wealthy Westlake neighborhood. The remaining stretch of Wilshire consisted of a dirt road passing through barley fields, pastures, oil fields and even a small airstrip.
About four miles west of Downtown, Ross had a goal to build a new retail destination. With that thought in mind, he bought 18 acres, from what is now approximately La Brea to Fairfax avenues, for $54,000.
Ross’ friends and associates thought he was crazy for wanting to build a shopping district several miles from the bustling Downtown, in an area that didn’t even have an electric streetcar. As a visionary, he believed this new form of transportation, the automobile, was the way of the future. He wanted to change the retail landscape.
Miracle Mile is built
Ross’ idea was to erect a shopping district that catered to cars, not pedestrians. This would mean simpler, larger, bolder signs oriented toward the street and easily viewed through a windshield. Each store needed larger frontage along the boulevard, as vehicles move faster than walkers. Buildings needed rear parking lots to accommodate shoppers and mitigate traffic even then. Large window displays were added along sidewalks as well as the rear entrances for those parking there. This was all new, revolutionary retail thinking.
Even the street itself was created differently. More and wider lanes were installed. Wilshire was the first road in the western U.S. to have dedicated left-turn lanes and synchronized traffic lights.
Ross lured businesses to Wilshire by offering very inexpensive rents, sometimes as little as $100 per foot frontage.
In 1924, the first structures of Miracle Mile starting appearing. But what sealed the success of the area was when Desmond’s, a well-known Los Angeles-based department store with three locations Downtown, in 1929 opened a fourth location in the Wilshire Tower at 5514 Wilshire Blvd., between Dunsmuir and Cochran avenues.
What’s in a name?
Ross originally named the area Wilshire Boulevard Center. However, there had been numerous nicknames over the years, such as Fifth Avenue of the West and America’s Champs Élysées. It wasn’t until a friend of Ross heard him talking about his development and described it as a “miracle,” that the name took hold.
The area has had its ups and downs over the decades, but has persevered as a destination. It’s still referred to as the Miracle Mile, with numerous signs declaring its name, but it’s also known as Los Angeles’ Museum Row.
Many of the original Art Deco buildings remain, but the only attribution to Ross’ impact on the area, and possibly all of Los Angeles, is that bust on a pedestal looking over his creation. The inscription reads, “Founder and developer of the Miracle Mile. Vision to see, wisdom to know, courage to do.” And that sums him up.
Category: Real Estate
